Harry Potter director Chris Columbus, who helmed the series’ first two films, has shared his reaction to recent set photos of the franchise’s upcoming HBO TV reboot — and in particular, images of new Hagrid actor Nick Frost in “the exact same costume”.
“Part of me was like, what’s the point?” Columbus said, speaking on the latest episode of The Rest is Entertainment podcast. “Part of me is like, okay, great.”
Columbus directed Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (or Sorcerer’s Stone, if you prefer) back in 2001, the success of which laid the groundwork for all seven Harry Potter books to be filmed for the big screen. The movie also established the first coherent look for much of the franchise’s now-familiar elements, some of which are now being reprised for HBO’s Harry Potter TV remake.
Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter, Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid & Anthony Wallyn as Hagridʼs stunt double on set of the upcoming “Harry Potter” HBO Max Original series in London. pic.twitter.com/YmVxd5nNCc
— Harry Potter Media (@PotterHBOMedia) August 19, 2025
“So, now it’s interesting, as of yesterday there are photos of Nick Frost as Hagrid walking with the new Harry Potter,” Columbus continued, “and he’s wearing the exact same costume that we designed for Hagrid!
“I thought the costumes, everything was going to be different, but it’s more of the same,” he said. “It’s very flattering for me, because I’m like, that’s exactly the Hagrid costume that we designed. So, part of it is really exciting, I’m excited to see what they’re going to do with it. Part of it is sort of deja vu all over again.”
But while some elements will likely feel very familiar, it’s obvious that HBO’s incarnation of Harry Potter will feel different in other ways. There’s the new set of actors cast as the series’ students and professors, obviously, but also the ability for the series to adapt the original books more faithfully, without being kept to a limited movie runtime.
Indeed, Columbus said he was keen to see the TV show’s incarnation of Peeves the Poltergeist, after the movie series notably cut the character despite British actor Rik Mayall originally recording footage for the first movie. Was Columbus therefore jealous of that extra screentime?
“Jealous? No, I’m so beyond it,” he replied. “My feeling is that I’ve done that, it’s time to move on. I’ve always had issues with the idea of franchise[s].
“When we did Gremlins and Goonies and those films, that’s why I never did the second Gremlins film. My attitude then was I’ve done it, it’s time to move on and do something different. It’s the same with Potter, I’m really proud of those films, the first three that I was involved with, and I’m moving on.”
The Harry Potter TV series is expected to debut on HBO in early 2027, with an eight-episode first season.
Image credit: Lia Toby/Getty Images.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
