Filmmaker Chris Columbus says he would love to return to the Wizarding World and direct a big-screen version of the smash hit play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. “I would love to direct The Cursed Child. It’s a great play and the kids are actually the right age to play those roles. It’s a small fantasy of mine,” Columbus told Variety.
Jack Thorne penned the 2016 play, based on an original story from Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling and John Tiffany. It takes place 19 years after the events of Rowling’s final Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows. The two-part stage drama, which runs about four hours total, won six Tony Awards, including Best Play, in 2018.
The show is returning to Broadway this month after a year’s closure due to the coronavirus pandemic. It will now be a streamlined, one-part production.
Columbus spoke to Variety to mark the 20th anniversary of his blockbuster movie, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, which was released on Nov. 16, 2001. Columbus also directed 2002’s Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. In all, there were eight film adaptations of Rowling’s seven best-selling fantasy novels, helmed by a rotating roster of directors.
The movies starred Daniel Radcliffe as the titular boy wizard in training, and Emma Watson and Rupert Grint as his best friends and classmates, Hermione and Ron.
The trio of heroes are prominently featured as adults in The Cursed Child play, as well. A stellar cast of adult British talent like Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Emma Thompson, Helena Bonham Carter, Jason Isaacs, Kenneth Branagh and Michael Gambon played supporting roles in the film series.
The final Harry Potter movie — Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 — was released in 2011, and Two Fantastic Beasts prequels set in the Wizarding World were released in 2016 and 2018.
ComicBook.com said rumors have been swirling that a Harry Potter TV series is in the works at HBO Max, although nothing has been officially announced. Columbus’ other credits include The Goonies, Gremlins, Home Alone and Mrs. Doubtfire.