J.K. Rowling

Accio new movie franchise!

The very first Harry Potter movie opened 15 years ago next month. Fifteen years. A lot has changed in blockbuster movies over the past decade and a half – superheroes are now front and center, CG has advanced to remarkable degrees, and remakes, prequels and spin-offs are filling the movie theaters. But J.K. Rowling’s magical world was one of the most original series of its time. Before Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone opened on November 18, 2001, the only major movies for kids born in the ‘80s and ‘90s were animated films from Disney and Dreamworks. The 21st Century also brought with it the Star Wars prequels and the Lord of the Rings series, but Harry Potter introduced a whole new era of fantasy blockbusters for kids (Chronicles of Narnia, The Golden Compass, Twilight, etc.). It gave millennials the first major family franchise of their generation.

Much of the appeal of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter website Pottermore lies in the extra bits the site dishes out from time to time, often from Rowling herself, as she expands on the Wizarding World’s universe. To prepare us all for the imminent Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, she’s published a few short histories of magic in America, where the film takes place. Today, she came out with another about the formation of MACUSA, the governing body of magic in the U.S., and how it fits in with American history as we know it.

Amid meme-induced confusion, 'Harry Potter' author J.K. Rowling clarifies that Harambe the gorilla is not a real Patronus result on Pottermore.

A few weeks ago, Daniel Radcliffe gave a very diplomatic answer when asked if he would ever consider a return to the Harry Potter franchise. And while the actor admitted that he would never close the door to the possibility — for the right script and with the right people involved — it turns out he may not have a franchise to return to. As reported by io9, Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling told reporters at the premiere of London stage show Harry Potter and the Cursed Child that her beloved character was done after the events of the play.

One of the major truths of the entertainment industry is that there will never be a more interesting movie than the one you haven’t yet made. This weekend, while The Legend of Tarzan director David Yates was gently trying to nudge conversations towards his film currently in theaters, people were understandably curious about his upcoming return to Hogwarts, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. And Yates let a particularly interesting piece of information drop.

When J.K. Rowling first revealed there was an American version of Howgarts, Harry Potter fans west of the Atlantic Ocean collectively freaked out. We too get our own school of witchcraft and wizardry?! Yep, and now we know a ton of new details about the school’s history, houses, and founder.

Not to point fingers, but with president Barack Obama’s number of days left in office gradually ticking down, it’s starting to look like he may just be using the powers of the position to meet all the cool famous people he can before his time’s up. Think about it: under the guise of a roundtable on urban opportunity and racial injustice, Obama summoned a star-studded lineup of hip-hop’s finest to the White House including Chance the Rapper, Pusha T, Rick Ross, Janelle Monáe, Nicki Minaj, Common, and Ludacris, among others just a couple weeks ago. I can speak only for myself, but if I was elected President, that’s the first thing I would do.

The final Harry Potter novel was full of grand battles and grander revelations, but it also featured a tiny detail that radically changed the saga’s timeline. Although J.K. Rowling’s first book in the beloved series was published in 1997 and the final book in 2007, a date on a gravestone revealed that the events of the final novel take place in 1997. That means that Harry Potter himself was born in 1980. Which means that he’s 35 in 2015. And according to Rowling herself, that makes today, September 1, 2015, the first day of school at Hogwarts for Harry’s eldest son.

In a move destined to make you wish that J.K. Rowling was your mom, the author of the ‘Harry Potter’ series recently won permission to build two massive 40-foot high tree houses in her backyard at a cost of almost $395,000.