TheHarry Potterbooks are well-loved by fans, bringing readers to the magical world of Quidditch games, Hogwarts classes, and adventures through Diagon Alley and the Forbidden Forest. The movies tried to recreate that magic, which sometimes meant changing the original material. Whilenot every change was a good one, the ones on this list were among the best.
From more-defined character relationships to higher stakes and more action, some scenes just worked better in movie-form. Hopefully, the new series will take note and verify to keep these changes (and maybeeven make some new ones).
10Multiple Line Improvements
Several lines in theHarry Pottermovies were marked improvements over the book ones. Sometimes, the timing of the line made all the difference, while in other cases, the character who spoke the line—or the way they said it—was what made it work so well. There were also some fun additions, such asDraco’s ad libbed, “I didn’t know you could read.” However,the best line change from book to filmarguably belonged to Sirius when he said, “The world isn’t split into good people and Death Eaters.”
During the book version ofHarry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,Sirius says this line after Harry suggests that Umbridge is working with Voldemort. In this context, he’s deriding Harry for a simplistic worldview in which people are good or bad. In the movie, however, the line comes after Harry expresses his fear that he’sbecoming a dark wizard. Here, Sirius' intention is to convince Harry that his actions are what define him, and that ultimately, Harry is good.
A Mixed Bag
Of course, some line deliveries in the movie were misses, such asDumbledore’s infamous and angry, “Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?” However, generally speaking, the cast did a fantastic job at their delivery, even ininstances where the material itself fell flat.
9Hedwig’s Death
Hedwig was Harry’s pet owl who accompanied him throughout his time at Hogwarts. Along with delivering his mail, she was his constant companion and friend, up until her tragic death. In both the book and the movie, this death occurred during the Battle of the Seven Potters when Harry was being escorted to the Burrow. In the book, Hedwig is killed in her cage by a Death Eater’s Killing Curse, and her death is sudden and heartbreaking. In the movies, however, the emotional punch is even harder as she dies trying to attack the Death Eaters and defend Harry.
Still Room For Improvement
While Hedwig’s movie death is an improvement over her book death, both versions fail to fully capture what Hedwig’s death should have meant to Harry. Perhaps this is becauseAlastor Moody also diedand George was injured, or maybe because, in the heat of being chased, Harry didn’t have time to grieve. However, the upcoming series could rectify this issue by giving hima chance to mourn post-battle. Hedwig deserves at least that much, and viewers deserve to see it.
8Small Story Details
A few small story changes really shine through during aHarry Potterrewatch. For example, in the books, Harry learned about the Gray Lady’s diadem accidentally through Voldemort, while in the movie,Luna came up with the idea. This gave the character more agency while also feeling more logically sound for the plot.
Similarly, movie Seamus was tasked with blowing up the bridge in the final battle, which was a callback to how often he caused things to explode in class. DuringChamber of Secrets, Dobby was also freed ina less silly way, and inGoblet of Fire,Neville actuallyenjoyed his time with Ginny at the danceas opposed to spending the whole night stepping on her toes.
Controversial Changes
Of course, not every small story change was universally embraced by fans. For example, duringThe Goblet of Fire,Harry was tasked with finding a way to breathe underwater for his next challenge.
In the book, he was helped by Dobby, who told him about the magical Gillyweed after overhearing about it from a disguised Barty Crouch Jr. In the movie, however, it was Neville who told Harry about the Gillyweed after reading about it in a book that Crouch (also disguised) lent him. While some fans appreciated the change—mainly because it helped establish Neville’s aptitude in Herbology, desire to help Harry, and general usefulness—others felt it was unnecessary, or worse,a disservice to Dobby.
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In the book, Hogwarts' uniforms consist of plain, black robes… and that’s pretty much it. In the movies, however,each House has its own robe colors, and the clothing underneath is more-or-less standardized, though some come with several unique accessories. Over time, the uniforms have also undergone several changes, appearing more layered when Harry’s parents went to school and more polished during Voldemort’s time there.
Layered Storytelling
The movies' outfits are more striking and unique, which isn’t just visually appealing, but also an interesting story element. They show more of what matters to each House and also help more quickly and clearly delineate the members, which becomes important early on when the Gryffindor-Slytherin rivalry is established. In this sense, they add to and help shape the story as opposed to simply being a throwaway detail.
6Harry and Hermione’s Friendship
In the books, Harry, Hermione, and Ron were all friends, but Harry and Ron were the central friendship. In the movies, more time was instead devoted to Harry and Hermione’s friendship, including one scene in which Hermione comforted Harry at Godric’s Hollow, another in which they danced together, and multiple times when they protected each other. These new and improved scenes showed that the two had a strong connection, though admittedly—to the delight of some fans and horror of others—it also at timessuggested they should be end game.
Three’s a Crowd
Unfortunately, by improving Harry and Hermione’s relationship, the movies had the unfortunate side effect of diminishingHermione’s relationship with Ron. Of course, this more-so had to do with Ron’s poor movie characterization and general lack of chemistry with Hermione. Hopefully, a movie version can reestablish book-Ron’s importance to the story while retaining movie-Hermione’s own importance and deepened connection with Harry.
5The Stakes of Voldemort’s Return
Voldemort’s return was already horrifying in the books, but the movies added or embellished several scenes to really show the serious threat he posed. For example, in the book version ofHalf-Blood Prince,he threatened to destroy the Brockdale Bridge and kill multiple Muggles if Cornelius Fudge didn’t step down from the Ministry of Magic. During the movie version, this attack was viewed in full, with Muggles futilely attempting to run from the bridge only to fall to their demise. Already chilling, a later scene inThe Deathly Hallowsmight be even worse.
Heightened Dangers
Before going into hiding with Harry and Ron, Hermione was forced to erase her Muggle parents' memories of her in order to keep them safe. In the book, she informed Harry after this was already done, and not much else was known about what happened, though it was later confirmed that the charm could be undone.
In the movie, however, the scene was depicted on-screen, and Hermione was shown usingthe irreversible spell, Obliviate. In essence, she was erasing herself from their lives, with the spell even removing her from family photos. Obviously, Hermione wouldn’t have done something like this unless it was absolutely necessary, and given Voldemort’s cruelty and power, it was.
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4The “Tale of the Three Brothers” Animation
The originalHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallowsintroduced readers to “The Tale of the Three Brothers,” which was found in a book gifted to Hermione by Dumbledore. Already interesting, the movie version made this tale far more engaging by presenting an animated version. Seamlessly, viewers were transported into the sepia-toned story as Hermione continued to narrate, and the story came alive for the viewers just as easily as it did for the Golden Trio.
Book Limitations
Of course, a book version could not include an animation; at best, it might add a few images to help a reader better visualize the story. For this reason, it’s hard to compare the book version to the movie version, as the book version could never have done what the movie did. However, the movie had the choice to do a direct adaptation that would have simply shown Hermione reading. Instead, it created an animation that wasn’t just visually striking, but also upped the tension and delivered something new.
3More of the Battle of Hogwarts
The Battle of Hogwarts was an epic event in the book, pitting the students, their teachers, and several other wizards against Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Multiple beloved characters were lost while others took down hated foes, and in the movie version, several scenes were added or extended, such as when Professor McGonagall summoned the statue defenders and Snape told Harryhe had his mother’s eyes. Even more interesting, the Battlepaid homage to the movies before it, including characters and scenes that harkened back to each.
The Battle Rages On
To be clear, we’re not saying that the Battle of Hogwarts as a whole was better than the book version. Some changes to the Battle—such as Voldemort’s death and Harry’s dramatic fall with him—were just bad, and we hope the new series doesn’t repeat them. However, the movie-version felt more action-packed and allowed the viewer to really take in the scale and chaos of the fight. As previously said, it also made a few changes that built upon what was already there.
Right now, the movie and book versions feel fairly distinct from each other, and rather than continue to battle over which is better, the series should combine the best parts of each. Specifically, that would mean the pacing, drama, and intensity of the movie version while also including (and perhaps expanding) more direct scenes from the original.
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2The Loss of Cedric
Cedric Diggory, played by Robert Pattinson, was Hogwarts' co-champion with Harry duringThe Goblet of Fire.At the end of the book, he raced Harry to the Triwizard Cup, only for them to simultaneously realize it was a Portkey that transported them to Voldemort, who immediately killed Cedric. After fending off the Dark Lord’s advances, Harry returned to Hogwarts with Cedric’s dead body. In the book, much of the attention was on Harry’s own reaction to the loss, but in the movie,the spotlight fell on Cedric’s father.
Full Emotional Weight
It’s hard to forget Amos Diggory’s cry of “My boy!” as he runs to Cedric’s body. It’s also difficult to forget Fleur’s scream as she realizes what’s happened. Even worse was seeing the crowd turn from laughter and clapping to horrified silence. Although certain aspects of Cedric’s death could be improved, like Harry’s guilt over his involvement, the reaction immediately after was haunting, depressing, and near-perfect.
1Snape Finds Lily’s Body
After learning of Trelawney’s prophecy, Voldemort became convinced that he had to murder the infant Harry Potter to prevent the child from killing him first. Snape, who was in love with Harry’s mother, Lily, was horrified by the idea, if only because it put Lily in danger. In both the book and movie, he tried to persuade Voldemort not to attack, but ultimately, his efforts were futile. However, after the attack, movie Snape found Lily’s lifeless body and cradled her as he mourned.
Snape’s character is a source of much debate, with many viewing his arc as redemptive and others finding it disturbing. While those debates certainly have merit, there’s no arguing that this additional movie scenemade Snape a more sympathetic characterwhile also diving deeper into what drives him.
Snape was one ofAlan Rickman’s greatest roles, and this scene in particular was among his best.The new Snapehas some big shoes to fill, and scenes like this could leave a great impression on audiences, making them look back on the series fondly.Always.
