The Harry Potter TV show needs to include several parts of the books that were missing from the movies, and that includes an important Severus Snape scene in The Philosopher’s Stone. Right from Season 1, the remake is expected to prove that it has greater fidelity to the source material than the Harry Potter movies. That’s one of the points of doing it, after all, and the format means a vastly expanded runtime, which in turn means there’ll be little excuse for cuts, especially early on in the show’s run.
Videos by ComicBook.com
We already know that Professor Binns will be teaching History of Magic, and Peeves is expected to be causing mischief in the halls of Hogwarts. Hopefully, it’ll also mean we get to see the story’s true beginning, which is Vernon Dursley’s day at work amid the wizarding world’s celebrations of Lord Voldemort’s demise. And it holds true for events near the end of the book as well, namely, Snape’s defense of the Philosopher’s Stone.
Snape’s Cut Challenge From The Philosopher’s Stone Explained
In the movie, as Harry, Ron, and Hermione progress through the underground chambers that ultimately lead to the Philosopher’s Stone, they’re met with a series of obstacles to overcome from different members of the Hogwarts staff, including:
- Fluffy (Hagrid’s challenge)
- Devil’s Snare (Prof. Sprout)
- Winged keys (Prof. Flitwick)
- Giant chessboard (Prof. McGonagall)
- The Mirror of Erised (Prof. Dumbledore)
In the book, however, after Ron is left behind following the chess victory, there are two more challenges for Harry and Hermione before they can get to the room with the Mirror of Erised and, thus, the stone. The fifth obstacle in the book is a mountain troll, planted there (and already knocked out) by Professor Quirrell, and the sixth is a potions riddle by Professor Snape.
This presents the person with seven bottles: one potion would allow the drinker to move forward, and another them to move back; two contained harmless nettle wine; three had deadly poison. There are clues to figure out which is which, and Hermione is the one to decipher them using her own logic, allowing her to go back to Ron and then get more help, and Harry to progress through to face Quirrell and, ultimately, Voldemort.
Cutting Snape’s Riddle Caused Multiple Problems For The Philosopher’s Stone
Presumably, this was cut due to time constraints, especially with multiple other challenges to get through. It’s also less visually dynamic and exciting, which might’ve been another reason. But that doesn’t make it the right choice, as it’s important for the characters and the cohesion of the story. It’s a moment that demonstrates just how special Hermione is: as she notes in the book scene, countless great wizards don’t possess logic, and she proves herself more than capable. It’s also another example of Harry’s bravery, as he chooses to go on alone.
More importantly, though, it doesn’t make sense given the information the movie presents us with. Hagrid directly tells Harry, Ron, and Hermione that Snape is one of the people protecting the stone, and thus can’t be trying to steal it. Although his riddle doesn’t irrefutably rule him out at the point it happens, it does at least allow Hagrid’s line to work as intended, and to make us doubt that Snape is the person Harry will find waiting for him. In the movie, we’re simply left wondering what Hagrid was talking about.
That’s even more the case when combined with the fact that Quirrell’s challenge. The troll has been taken care of in the book, which may seem innocuous enough, but fits perfectly with the reveal that he was behind it all, whereas Snape’s requires a lot of work to overcome. Given we’re continually kept guessing about Snape’s allegiances throughout the story, it’s great to have these early moments that show whose side he was on and why Dumbledore’s faith in him was justified.
This better fits with wider wizarding world lore and mythology, too. In the book, it means there are seven obstacles to be overcome. This makes a lot of sense, since seven is considered the most magically powerful number, so of course that’s how many Dumbledore would choose. It doesn’t ruin the movie by any means to only have five, but it just strips away a little of the magic.
Thankfully, the remake should have no reason to omit this scene, and it’s not a complicated riddle to figure out how to work it in. It could have an entire episode – presumably the Season 1 finale – dedicated to the trio going through the trapdoor, overcoming the obstacles, and finally defeating Quirrell/Voldemort. In the movie, there’s less than 30 minutes between getting past Fluffy and the end of the movie, something the TV show’s runtime should easily be able to expand on. And then, finally, Snape’s potions riddle can be restored.
HBO’s Harry Potter remake is currently in production, with a target release date sometime in 2027.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image Courtesy of Ufotable -
Image Courtesy of Marvel Comics
