The first trailer for the new HBO Harry Potter series dropped on Wednesday and it has faced mixed reviews, with people asking if it’s really necessary.
Many of us grew up reading Harry Potter books or watching the movies so we will no doubt have a high standard for any sort of remake. But there is now a new generation of Potterheads, and they are getting a new era of magic later this year when the HBO series is released. And we are sure that millions of OG fans will tune in too.
The series will see new actors take on the iconic roles that we so very strongly associate with established actors, so no doubt comparisons will be made. Which isn’t always a bad thing but people are certainly having no problem sharing their thoughts on social media.
Many people are having trouble understanding why there is even a need for the remake, when the original films are still so beloved and watched universally, and although the effects are now outdated, they still don’t look out of place in 2026.
Mixed reviews of new Harry Potter trailer
The trailer gave us our first looks at Nick Frost playing Hagrid, John Lithgow as Dumbledore, Janet McTeer as McGonagall and Paapa Essiedu as Snape as well as Dominic McLaughlin, Arabella Stanton and Alastair Stout as Harry, Hermione and Ron.
While some people are excited for a fresh take on the classic story, others are not looking forward to seeing new faces replace characters that they know so well, and they took to social media to share their thoughts.
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‘Against all odds, I was fully unprepared for just how off-putting and uncomfortable this would be to watch,’ one fan wrote on X and someone else added: ‘Something about seeing such a classically-crafted, iconic film series translated into the aesthetics of a modern HBO prestige streamer show just feels uncanny valley wrong.’
Others added that it seems unnecessary because of how similar it seems to the movies, with one person saying: ‘I think I’m just astonished with how similar it looks to the movies. If you’re going to redo what’s already been done, add some unique flavour to it. There were moments in this trailer where, gun to head, I would have sworn were from the movie. Especially the Dursley house.’
‘Looks really well produced, the sets and costumes are great… but I feel zero magic. It’s missing that little spark. The music doesn’t help either, it feels really banal and adds nothing positive to the trailer. Maybe I’m just too nostalgic for the colour grading of the 2001 film,’ somebody else added.
Others admitted that they are looking forward to the new era of Hogwarts, saying that they will watch it ‘as soon as it’s released’.
The production is expected to take 10 years to complete and the first series is not to be renamed Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in the US, as the movies were. It will be released in December 2026.
I don’t know, my eight-year-old can’t wait for it so maybe the OG fans aren’t the target audience…
