J.K. Rowling Finally Clears the Air About Steven Spielberg — Here’s What Really Happened
Before Christopher Columbus brought Harry Potter to theaters, J.K. Rowling had early talks with Steven Spielberg—and, despite persistent rumors, there was no feud. In a 2000 interview with The Times, she sets the record straight on those conversations and the path that led to the franchise’s first director.
There was a version of history where Steven Spielberg kicked off Harry Potter. That didn't happen, obviously. Christopher Columbus got the job, the box office exploded, and the rest is theme-park merch. But the prehistory is interesting, and it ties neatly into where the franchise is headed now with HBO Max's new series.
Back when Spielberg almost did it
When Warner Bros. first bought the rights, they called Spielberg. He actually considered it, then walked. The big creative sticking point: he wanted to make the first book as an animated film and reportedly had Haley Joel Osment in mind to voice Harry. That would have been a wild left turn, and to be honest, you can see why the studio and Rowling weren't lining up behind that take.
Rowling herself said in 2000 that she talked to Spielberg and that it wasn't some dramatic blow-up. She just… preferred the direction that was chosen.
"I have spoken to Steven Spielberg. Did I have a fight with him? No, I definitely did not... There were things he said that I didn't agree with, there were things he said that I did agree with... I am very happy with the director we've got."
Columbus took the gig, shot in the UK, and Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone nearly cracked $1 billion worldwide off a $125 million budget. So yeah, the studio didn't exactly lose sleep over how it shook out.
Why Spielberg said no (and doesn't regret it)
Spielberg has been clear: it wasn't just creative differences. It was his life. Making the movie would have meant relocating overseas for months, and his kids were young. He chose home over Hogwarts.
"They offered me 'Harry Potter' and I chose to turn down the first 'Harry Potter' to basically spend the next year and a half with my family, my young kids growing up... I sacrificed a great franchise — which today looking back I'm very happy to have done — to be with my family."
He's also said he didn't feel ready to make an all-kids movie at the time. His kids thought he was nuts to pass, and he already knew the books were huge, so he wasn't blind to what the films would become. He just didn't want to be the one making them then.
Fast-forward: the new HBO Max series
Now, the wizarding world is heading back to TV with a full-scale, start-from-book-one live-action series at HBO Max, and Rowling isn't just watching from afar. She's an executive producer and has been involved in writing and casting. Cameras started rolling in mid-2025 in the UK, and there have already been public sightings — including a Harry-and-Hagrid moment at London's Embankment over the summer. Deadline says Rowling made her first set visit on November 19, 2025, to check in on progress.
- Title: Harry Potter
- Format: Live-action fantasy drama series
- Platform: HBO Max
- Source material: All seven novels by J.K. Rowling
- Showrunner: Francesca Gardiner (Succession, Killing Eve)
- Lead director: Mark Mylod (multiple episodes)
- Executive producers: J.K. Rowling, David Heyman, Neil Blair, Ruth Kenley-Letts, and others
- Filming: Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden and various UK locations; production began mid-2025
- Season 1 scope: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
- Episodes: Expected around 8 hour-ish episodes
- Target premiere: Aiming for 2027
- Cast (so far): Dominic McLaughlin (Harry Potter), Alastair Stout (Ron Weasley), Arabella Stanton (Hermione Granger), John Lithgow (Albus Dumbledore), Janet McTeer (Minerva McGonagall), Paapa Essiedu (Severus Snape), Nick Frost (Rubeus Hagrid), plus Luke Thallon (Quirrell), Paul Whitehouse (Filch), Katherine Parkinson (Molly Weasley)
With Gardiner steering and Mylod directing multiple episodes, expect more of the book detail the original films had to speed past because, you know, two-hour runtimes. The casting choices are also... bold. John Lithgow as Dumbledore and Paapa Essiedu as Snape? That's going to have people talking.
The what-if and the what's-next
Could Spielberg have delivered a great Potter? Obviously. Would his version — animated, with Haley Joel Osment voicing Harry — have set the same tone as what we got? Not a chance. He made the right call for his life, Columbus landed the plane, and now HBO Max is rebuilding the runway for a longer flight.
If you want a nostalgia refresher while you wait for 2027, all eight Potter films are streaming on HBO Max in the U.S.