Harry Potter Director Has Disappointing Update On A Cursed Child Adaptation

Chris Columbus has given a new update on his planned adaptation of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child after recent controversies. Known for directing the likes of Home Alone, Rent, Mrs. Doubtfire, and, recently, The Thursday Murder Club, Chris Columbus also received acclaim for his work on the first two Harry Potter movies back in 2001 and 2002, respectively. In the two decades since, however, Columbus’ relationship with the Harry Potter franchise has been soured, spurring his new disappointing update about his planned adaptation of the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child stage show.

“It’s never going to happen,” Chris Columbus revealed to The Times UK (via Deadline) when asked about the development of his Cursed Child adaptation. “It’s gotten so complicated with all the political stuff. Everyone in the cast has their own opinion, which is different from [J. K. Rowling’s] opinion, which makes it impossible.” Columbus’ reference to Rowling’s recent trans-exclusionist opinions and criticisms of the transgender community, to which many of the original Harry Potter cast and crew, including Columbus, vehemently disagree. This has led to their refusal to be associated with Rowling, ending Columbus’ Cursed Child adaptation before it began.

What a Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Adaptation Could Look Like

Originally debuted on London’s West End at the Palace Theatre in July 2016, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child began during the epilogue of 2011’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2. Harry and Ginny send their second son, Albus Severus Potter, off to Hogwarts, where he is atypically sorted into Slytherin, and becomes close friends with Draco Malfoy’s son, Scorpius. They embark on a time-twisting adventure to try and save Cedric Diggory, but ultimately end up almost unleashing Voldemort on the world once again, but the intervention of Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Draco saves the day.

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The Harry Potter TV Series Has a Big Problem (And They Know It)

Back in November 2021, Chris Columbus suggested to The Hollywood Reporter that it would be “amazingly fun” to direct a theatrical adaptation of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. With Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint then being at the right ages to portray the adult versions of their childhood characters, this could have worked out perfectly. In the years since, however, Columbus’ relationship with the franchise, and that of many of the other members of cast and crew, has been soured because of its association with J. K. Rowling and her controversial views.

The development of a new Harry Potter TV series reboot for HBO has excited fans of the original novels and movies, and could provide the best new chance for an adaptation of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. The HBO series is expected to run for ten years, with each novel being told during the course of a season. Cursed Child could get its own season, perhaps releasing at some point in the 2030s. Since the new adaptation is making few changes to Chris Columbus’ original movies, however, the acclaimed director and many viewers are left wondering, “What’s the point?”

Do you want to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child get a theatrical adaptation? Let us know in the comments!