Director Chris Columbus Reflects on Trio and the First Two Harry Potter Films
Columbus InterviewsAs part of the build up to the release of the much anticipated Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Ultimate Edition DVDs due next month, director Chris Columbus is the subject of a new feature in the LA Times Hero Complex blog. In this article, Chris Columbus reflects back on the casting of the Trio and remarks too at how far they have come since those very early movies. Quotage of interest:
"Having done the 'Home Alone' pictures, I realized that we needed to start casting kids based on their families and the security that their families could give them at this particular time in their lives -- that was particularly the case with the "Potter" kids, who were about to become three of the most famous kids in the world," Columbus said. "So David Heyman and I made sort of a pact that we were gonna cast the families as well as the kids. And in interviewing Dan’s family and Rupert’s family and Emma’s family, they surrounded themselves with a really solid group of people. Their parents were very supportive, their parents were there for them all the time."
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"There wasn’t this obsession for fame," the 51-year-old director said. "It all sort of happened -- particularly with Daniel Radcliffe -- reluctantly. With the other two kids it seemed accidentally – they weren’t expecting it. And I think as a result of that, because they had that sense of support from us at the beginning, and from their parents throughout, they’ve really turned into terrific adults. And that being said, they’ve also turned into terrific actors, you know. "Debate, if you will, the quality of Columbus as a director but don't doubt for a minute his value to the franchise that is now a towering part of Hollywood history. "Boy, I’m telling you, to see them grow as actors and actually having the opportunity to see Dan in [the stage play] 'Equus'…I was just really, really impressed. It was the feeling of a proud parent."
I agree with all the previous posts saying that Chris Columbus is a good director and, I love what he did with the HP movies, especially the first which is my equal favorite along with PoA. Chris was true to the books, and I really like being able to watch the movie and recognize the words from the book or, read the book and visualize the same lines from the movie. Also, before the first movie no one had seen the wizarding world. He had a unique magical vision and brought Harry’s world alive for us all :)