even before its filming, the series already at the heart of a trial

Announced for the end of 2026 or the beginning of 2027, the reboot series Harry Potter by HBO is one of Hollywood’s hottest projects. Today we learn that even before filming begins, the series is at the heart of a legal trial.

Harry Potter series: Warner already in court

One of the most popular fantasy works in the world, the cycle Harry Potter by JK Rowling has sold several hundred million copies worldwide. Quickly adapted for cinema by the Warner studio, the saga was the subject of a true cult following throughout the 2000s. After the Beatlemania of the 1960s, the Curemania of the 1980s, the Batmania of the 1990s, the 2000s saw the emergence of Pottermania. During the 2010s, the Warner group wanted to ride on the success of the cinematographic saga with the new cycle Fantastic Beastswhose scenarios were written by JK Rowling herself.

Unfortunately, this new cycle suffered from major writing problems. While it was initially supposed to conclude with its fifth installment, Warner Bros. Discovery put the project on hiatus after the resounding failure of the third film, Fantastic Beasts: Dumbledore’s Secrets. At the same time, JK Rowling’s aura has been tainted by regular positions considered transphobic. However, Warner Bros. Discovery does not intend to abandon the wizarding world. Announced many months ago, the reboot series Harry Potter produced by HBO is due to enter production soon.

But in addition to having to resolve a few small practical problems (for example, the choice of a casting which is not immediately swept away by nostalgia for the films), we now learn that the Hollywood major is sued by Comcast, the first American internet operator. Indeed, the company accuses Warner of not having respected the terms of a contract signed in 2019 with the British operator Sky Television (owned by Comcast), forcing the studio to co-produce four series per year, including the new series Harry Potter.

According to the complaint, Warner had an obligation to offer him co-financing of the series Harry Potter but would have preferred to use it as a loss leader for its Max platform. In response, a Warner spokesperson said in a statement that with licensing contracts expiring at the end of 2025, this lawsuit was just a “baseless strategy” in order to serve as leverage for the next negotiations. Furthermore, the Hollywood group categorically refuses that Harry Potter becomes a Warner/Comcast co-production.