Harry Potter Alum Refuses To Return For Franchise Reboot
Despite a number of cast and crew members assembling to work on the upcoming Harry Potter television series, one filmmaker has confirmed that he will not be returning. Director David Yates, who was responsible for helming four films in the beloved film franchise, has expressed interest in moving forward and exploring more grounded and realistic tales, opting to skip out on the reboot series. This news, which comes courtesy of an exclusive write-up in Comicbook.com, comes just days after Harry Potter author JK Rowling doubled down on her comments about the LGBTQ community, and trans people in particular.
David Yates, director of the last four films in the Harry Potter series and all of the Fantastic Beasts movies, has stated he wants to on from the franchise.
Due to the creator’s harmful and unorthodox opinions regarding gender identity, many fans and cast members of the Harry Potter franchise have strayed from the IP in recent years. While David Yates made no specific mention of JK Rowling‘s behavior in his recent comments, the timing of the announcement does seem hard to ignore. Rowling recently made waves following the news that a Labour Party government could criminalize the intentional misgendering of transgender people with the threat of prison time, a threat which the author claims will not deter her from utilizing harmful language.
For now, there have been very few updates regarding the future of the Harry Potter reboot series, though executives at Warner Brothers have maintained that the series is expected to arrive sometime in 2025.
When asked about his desire to pivot away from the Harry Potter universe, Yates simply explained that his recent work on films such as Pain Hustlers has inspired him to engage with more grounded stories. The film, which is set to premiere on Netflix this weekend, stars Emily Blunt, Chris Evans, Chloe Coleman, Andy Garcia, and Schitt’s Creek‘s Catherine O’Hara. Unlike the fantasy world of the Harry Potter franchise, Pain Hustlers is set to follow a blue-collar working woman who struggles financially as she gambles her life on a high-stakes racketeering scheme in order to pay for her young daughter’s increasing medical debt.
David Yates previously helmed Harry Potter installments, including 2007’s The Order of the Phoenix, 2009’s The Half-Blood Prince, and the two-part franchise finale Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The filmmaker returned to the wizarding world years later to direct each of the three Fantastic Beasts prequel films, with rumors still circulating regarding a potential fourth and fifth installment. It seems unlikely that Warner Brothers would opt to continue the Fantastic Beasts franchise, as the films have failed to inspire audience interaction or box office numbers that rival the original Harry Potter franchise.
When asked about his desire to pivot away from the Harry Potter universe, Yates simply explained that his recent work on films such as Pain Hustlers has inspired him to engage with more grounded stories.
The middling response to the Fantastic Beasts trilogy may also be a driving force behind Yates’ decision not to return to the Harry Potter universe, with the director plainly stating that he cannot imagine returning to the hallowed halls and classrooms of the franchise after spending this much time moving forward and focussing on new adventures. David Yates made sure to emphatically offer well wishes to the upcoming reboot series and all who participate in it before concluding his interview, showing that the filmmaker still has love for the franchise, even if the thought of returning to it would make him feel artistically stagnant.
For now, there have been very few updates regarding the future of the Harry Potter reboot series, though executives at Warner Brothers have maintained that the series is expected to arrive sometime in 2025. Of course, a number of productions have been shifted from their original release throughout 2024 and 2025 due to this year’s WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, which shut down nearly every Hollywood production for months at a time, meaning the project could be pushed well into 2026 unless the team work incredibly fast.
