‘Cursed Child’ Cast Panel, ‘Origin’ Panel with Tom Felton & Natalia Tena, ‘Harry Potter Pensieve Experience’ & More NYCC Exclusives!

Oct 05, 2018

Posted by: Dawn Johnson

Actor Interviews, Art, Books, Contests, Dale, Events, Exclusives, Fan Events, Fans, Felton, Felton Interviews, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Interviews, News, Products, Round-Up, Tena, Tena Interviews

Wizarding fans appeared at New York Comic Con yesterday–whether by broom, portkey, Floo Powder, apparition or, sadly, non-magical means–excited to see the cast of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Tom Felton and Natalia Tena for YouTube’s Origin panel. Once again, Leaky’s editor and correspondent Amanda Kirk was onsite alongside other fan sites, such as Pottermore, to bring you coverage from the event! Keep reading for coverage, as well as tips for not-to-miss Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts material and actor at the event this weekend!

Harry Potter fans were easy to spot–no detectors from Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes needed–resplendent in their cosplay!

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Panel

It turns out the Cursed Child cast weren’t too difficult to locate either, arriving in style–of the Muggle variety, that is.

When it was finally time to congregate for the Cursed Child panel, the fans went wild!

And it’s important to start with the big questions. (House Pride is not to be downplayed!)

Anthony Boyle (Scorpius) shared stories from his first comic con (where he helped “dress a ghostbuster” on the way in), and spoke about how long they’d been fans of the Harry Potter series for before joining Cursed Child. Alex Price (Draco) said he wasn’t a huge fan before the play, Anthony Boyle and Sam Clemmett (Albus Severus) had read the books. Poppy Miller (Ginny) said she first read the books whilst camping, Paul Thornley said he saw people on the tube reading Harry Potter, and has read the books, but gets teased by the other actors for not knowing anything! Jamie Parker loves the books, and although being a part of Cursed Child means working nights, he really wants to read the books to his son; he records himself reading 20 minutes of a Harry Potter book in the toilet every day to send to him!

When asked what the play means to then, Noma Dumezweni (Hermione) said that Cursed Child is about finding your identity, and Sam Clemmett chimed in, saying “it’s packed full of humanity”.  Attendees were lucky enough to see a clip of the play, and see a video message from composer Imogen Heap (who is currently on tour and will release the soundtrack in an album titled The Music of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child next month) – a first in Wizarding World history!

Jamie Parker, New York’s resident Harry Potter, explained why the play has a place within canon and within the fandom:

He even broke into song, which was unexpected and–dare we say it?–magical!

The actors also answered a few questions from the audience:

It was such an incredible experience getting to see the Cursed Child cast reveal a few of the secrets of the stage for the very first time!

‘Origin’ Trailer Debuts, Starring Tom Felton & Natalia Tena

A new YouTube Premium series begins next month starring Harry Potter‘s Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy) and Natalia Tena (Tonks), and we were lucky enough to attend the NYCC panel, where the latest trailer for the sci-fi series made its debut:

The 10-part series begins November 14th, created by Mika Watkins, directed by Paul W.S. Anderson and produced by those behind The Crown and Lost. The story is described as follows:

“[Origin] follows a group of outsiders who find themselves abandoned on a ship bound for a distant land. Now they must work together for survival, but quickly realize that one of them is far from who they claim to be.”

Tom Felton and Natalia Tena spoke more about their characters during the panel. Felton said that though he’s not a huge Sci-Fi fan, he loved the script for Origin, whereas Natalia Tena loves Sci-Fi and Fantasy stories, and is even a big collector of comic books! They’re also clearly loving that the series is partly a thriller, as – though he stars in the show – Felton said following the preview:

“My heart is racing. It’s one of the scariest bloody things I’ve ever seen.”

The show is reportedly “all horror”,  and is described as a Lord of the Flies type story, where the characters are trapped in a horrible situation. Natalia Tena said she had a fun experience on set, and is most looking forward to her fight scenes. Tom Felton thinks audiences will enjoy seeing the “special lady” in his character’s life. He told audiences that he had a few injuries whilst filming the series, including slamming his hand into a wall! He held strong, and even though it was “p*****g out blood” he didn’t call the medic, and didn’t even stop the scene!

The actors also shared their most challenging aspects of filming the series:

Felton also made a couple of Potter references!

We can’t wait until the series debuts on November 14th! What did you think of the new trailer?

Audible and Pottermore’s Pensieve Experience

Audible also teamed up with Pottermore to present a one-of-a-kind fan experience.

Audible, in partnership with Pottermore, described the “A Harry Potter Pensieve Experience” as follows:

“[It is] an interactive, multi-sensory content experience that brings fans even closer to the magic through an interactive, multi-sensory content experience, in celebration of 20 years of Harry Potter.

“’A Harry Potter Pensieve Experience’ is inspired by the Hogwarts Pensieve, a wizarding world object enchanted to recreate memories so that they become relivable. Fans can select a Harry Potter character to follow on an immersive audio journey, sampling some of their most memorable moments in the audiobooks that continue to capture the hearts of millions of listeners everywhere. This experience gives fans an opportunity to reminisce on iconic and favorite memories to celebrate the 20th anniversary.”

We had the chance to investigate the experience for ourselves, and chose Harry’s memories, which revealed special recordings of moments from Harry’s story, narrated by U.S. audiobook reader Jim Dale.

Check out these videos from Pottermore teasing the memorable experience.

Syfy provided an in-depth account of the experience, recounting how participating fans walked down a corridor to the sound of narrator Jim Dale voicing Harry’s first encounter with the pensieve. Before entering the next room, fans were advised to consider which of six characters’ memories they would choose: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Lord Voldemort, Albus Dumbledore or Severus Snape. They then selected the appropriate vial, just like those from Dumbledore’s office, and proceeded into a space filled with ethereal floating creations intended to conjure the visual of silvery memories swirling in the waters of the pensieve.

Syfy elaborated on the next exciting steps, reporting:

“With a vial, one can approach four different stations set up inside. Insert the vial into each station which also includes headphones and a tall video screen. After placing the vial into the opening, a specific audiobook excerpt about a character plays as the image on the screen moves and changes.

“Each station plays a different moment related to the character. The “memories” aren’t in any specific order, so anyone looking for a more linear journey for a character through books one to seven won’t find that here. However, as Harry did with Dumbledore, one will be able to feel immersed in the select few moments that are there. These audiobook excerpts aren’t long, but they’re long enough for you to be thrust back into a classic scene from the series for a little while.”

Paul Thornley also had the chance to give it a go and chose Ron Weasley–no surprise there! He then spoke to Pottermore, alongside Poppy Miller, about how it went. 

Thornley, Weasley and Noma Dumezweni closed out their time with Pottermore by remarking on the fantastic reception they’d had at NYCC and how much they enjoyed the enthusiasm of the fans.

“A Harry Potter Pensieve Experience” will be open at the Javits Convention Center for New York Comic-Con badge holders through Sunday, Oct. 7. So if you’re planning to attend, don’t miss it!

Dan Fogler Signs Brooklyn Gladiator & Dan Fogler’s 4D Experience Podcast Shirts

We caught up with Fantastic Beasts star Dan Fogler at NYCC, who was back where he was before getting the role of Jacob Kowalski – selling his comics to attendees! His latest graphic novel, Brooklyn Gladiator, is a “psychic-cyberpunk story” focusing on protagonist John Miller, so if you get the chance to meet Dan at booth #138, be sure to buy a comic, and he’ll sign anything! Look out for our giveaway of a shirt and signed copy of Brooklyn Gladiator, coming soon:

Jelly Belly Harry Potter Exclusives

This weekend, Jelly Belly (booth #503) will host Artist in Residence Kristen Cumings, who is busy making a portrait of Harry Potter live out of jelly beans! Kristen is one of the only people in the world that uses jelly beans as her art form, and we had the chance to check out the masterpiece-in-progress for ourselves: 

The portrait is expected to take the entire weekend to complete, so check back for a final image! We had a chat with Kristen about the portrait, and our friends at Transfiguring Adoption sent in a fun question about how many Bertie Botts she gets through when making a portrait. Watch our chat with Kritsen below:

The booth also give the chance to spin the BeanBoozled 5th Edition wheel, and try some mystery flavours of jelly beans, and take a look at Jelly Belly’s newest Harry Potter treats, including chocolate wands and gummi creatures – head over there to try these magical treats!

Funko Exclusives

Funko have unleashed their New York Comic Con exclusive figures, so look out for them this weekend! Figures include the Augurey (in collaboration with Amazon), Hermione Granger with Sorting Hat (with Barnes and Noble) and Professor Quirrell (with FYE) – be sure to check them out! See photos of the figures below:

Screenshot 2018-10-04 23.33.05 s-l1600

Insight Editions – ‘Pop-Up Wizardry’ Panel, Signings & Exclusive Copies of Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Guide to Hogwarts

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Another booth to check out is Insight Editions at #1946, who are handing out beautifully designed cards (some featuring Harry Potter designs!), and previewing upcoming publications, including Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Guide to Hogwarts – you’ll even be able to get your hands on some NYCC exclusive copies, if you’re fast enough!

On October 7th there’s also the chance to attend a ‘Pop-Up Wizardry Panel‘ with master paper engineer Matthew Reinhart, award-winning illustrator Kevin M. Wilson, and others to discuss the creation of Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Guide to Hogwarts, and bringing the castle to life with 3D paper art. The panel takes place 1:15PM – 2:15PM on Sunday, in Room 1B03. Mathew and Kevin will also be hosting signings at 3pm on both Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th.

Take a look at the material Insight Editions are previewing here.

Doctor Who Panel Featuring David Tennant, Good Omens Panel with Tennant & Miranda Richardson

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Finally, today, Friday 5th, David Tennant (Barty Crouch Jr) will be joined by ocDtor Who‘s Matt Smith and Alex Kingston for ‘Tardis Time’ – a panel about their time on the show. The panel takes place 8:00 PM – 10:00 PM at the Hammerstein Ballroom – don’t miss it!

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Tennant will also be joined by co-star Miranda Richardson (Rita Skeeter), and Michael Sheen, as well as creator Neil Gaiman and Douglas Mackinnon for a panel on upcoming series Good Omens. The panel takes place 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM at the Hulu theatre in Madison Square Gardens tomorrow, Saturday 6th.

There’s plenty of Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts material yet to come at NYCC, so be on the look out throughout the weekend, and be sure to send or tag us in any photos via Twitter, Facebook or Instagram!





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