If you want to make a Millennial brutally aware of the relentless march of time today, go up to one and tell them that the film adaptation of Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone just turned 20 years old. Yes, it’s officially two decades since audiences up and down the country were hearing Hagrid say “Yer a wizard, Harry!” to a bespectacled young Daniel Radcliffe – and as part of the celebrations comes some pretty exciting news: the original cast of the films is reuniting for an upcoming special.
As confirmed by the official Wizarding World website, 1 January 2022 will offer up a special treat to HBO Max subscribers (and, hopefully, to a UK broadcaster too): a retrospective special titled Return To Hogwarts that will see Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson getting back together for the first time in a long, long time to talk 20 years of magic. Not only that, but they’ll be joined by a whole host of familiar faces from the series – including Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Robbie Coltrane, Gary Oldman, Imelda Staunton, Tom Felton, Evanna Lynch, Matthew Lewis, Bonnie Wright, the Phelps twins, Mark Williams, Alfred Enoch, and Philosopher’s Stone and Chamber Of Secrets director Chris Columbus.
The special will be filming at the Warner Bros Studio Tour – The Making Of Harry Potter in Watford, and will include “in-depth interviews, never-before-seen clips, special guests and a few extra exciting surprises along the way”. Just, make sure Quirrell doesn’t let any trolls in, please. Later in 2022 will see the arrival of the much-delayed third film in the Fantastic Beasts series, officially titled The Secrets Of Dumbledore, currently due for release on 8 April.