‘Harry Potter’ Will Get Its First TV Series

Warner Bros. has struggled in recent years to find ways to continue the Harry Potter franchise beyond J.K. Rowling’s original seven books. Interest in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them movies has continued to dwindle, but fans continue to love the Wizarding Word and the universe of Hogwarts and Harry Potter.

So how about just re-adapting the original Harry Potter novels again?

That’s what Max (AKA The Streaming Service Formerly Known as HBO Max) plans to do. As part of the big unveiling of this new (or newish) Max service, Warner Bros. announced plans for a scripted TV series based on Rowling’s Harry Potter novels.

The official press release claims “the stories from each of Rowling’s Harry Potter books will become a decade-long series produced with the same epic craft, love and care this global franchise is known for.” It also promises the show will include “a new cast” — which means a new Harry Potter. (What do you think Daniel Radcliffe thinks about that? Jealousy? Or immense relief?

READ MORE: The 25 Best Harry Potter Characters, Ranked

Max says that each season of the show “will be authentic to the original books and bring Harry Potter and these incredible adventures to new audiences around the world, while the original, classic and beloved films will remain at the core of the franchise and available to watch globally.” In other words, you can still watch the old movies, and watch the new show too. Or at least, that’s what they hope you will do.

One imagines that the plan will be to adapt each book as its own separate season of an ongoing TV show. Such a show, if it was popular, could be the centerpiece of Max’s programming for years and years to come. Of course it’s a risky plan, too. A Harry Potter TV show won’t be cheap, and if fans feel it doesn’t match the excellence of the old films, they might stop watching. Muggles are notoriously hard to please.