Harry almost went Hollywood
Why Harry isn't American
In an interview with The Telegram, Harry Potter Producer David Heyman reminisced about the early days of the film franchise, when a number of directors were keen on turning Harry, Hermione, and Ron into Americans and changing Hogwarts to a Hollywood high school. But Heyman, who optioned the first book in 1997, insisted that the film stay true to the book's English identity, and the payoff has been huge.
"Hollywood is risk-adverse and what makes them feel secure is to have an American in the lead," Heyman said. "This was before Harry Potter was the big phenomenon that he became, so they were entitled to that view. But for me, it would have destroyed the stories.
"For me, one of the things I responded to in these books is their Englishness. The story is very English. It has cultural specificity, but it has thematic and emotional universality."
ARTICLE: Harry almost went Hollywood
Wizard not the same with a Yankee doodle accent
CanWest News Service-London
Can you imagine the world of Harry Potter being relocated to a trendy Hollywood high school?
Don’t laugh. In the days when the J.K. Rowling books were becoming international best-sellers and Hollywood was starting to see them as a potential cash cow, one Tinseltown filmmaker said he was ready to take on the project - but only if the Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry acquired an American identity and became a reworking of Beverly Hills 90210.
Another filmmaker reluctantly conceded that if the first film, Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone, was to be made, it would probably have to retain its English setting - but in order to make the movie palatable, it would be necessary to turn Harry into an American.
And there was a further proposal - that Harry’s two friends, Hermione and Ron, should also be American because kids in the U.S. needed home-grown heroes who didn’t have funny accents.
British producer David Heyman winces at these memories, but he doubts that any such proposal could have made it to first base.
To begin with, Rowling had initially been reluctant to make a movie deal of any kind because she didn’t trust Hollywood. Secondly, Heyman was there to protect her interests - to make sure that the movies would retain their British sensibility, use a British cast and be shot in the U.K.
In a sense, Heyman has been a keeper of the grail for the reclusive author.
That was how he won the rights to the books in the first place - by pledging the movies would be true to their originals. But 10 years ago, he had no concept of Harry’s potential.
“I optioned the book in 1997,” he remembers. “What happened was that there was an article in a book publishing magazine, and a woman in my office read the article, called up the book’s agent, and a copy of The Philosopher’s Stone came in. It lay on the bottom shelf - our priority low point place - for several weeks.”
Heyman’s office was constantly seeking out potential film material from the piles of new books.
But it wasn’t until his secretary became so fed up with the “rubbish” she had been reading that she decided to take the Potter book home. At the firm’s Monday meeting, she reported that she had enjoyed this novel about a young boy in wizard school.
“I thought - what a great idea,” Heyman says now. “I read it and thought - this is fantastic. But I had no idea then that it would become the phenomenon it has become.”
Still, once he had optioned the film rights, he knew he had a responsibility to safeguard the interests of Rowling and the books.
He understands why there were proposals for an Americanized Harry Potter, pointing out that the American film industry tends to be insular-looking in such matters.
Some Hollywood pundits still deplore the fact that James Bond is not portrayed by American stars; more recently, the estate of British author C.S. Lewis blocked efforts to give the film versions of the Narnia Chronicles an American setting.
Currently, there is controversy over plans to star Tom Cruise in a movie about the Battle of Britain.
“Hollywood is risk-adverse and what makes them feel secure is to have an American in the lead,” Heyman says. He’s prepared to forgive industry colleagues for proposing an Americanized Harry Potter. “This was before Harry Potter was the big phenomenon that he became, so they were entitled to that view. But for me, it would have destroyed the stories.
“For me, one of the things I responded to in these books is their Englishness. The story is very English. It has cultural specificity, but it has thematic and emotional universality.”
“The stories and themes in the books are relatable.
“We’ve all been through having our first crush, having our first kiss, suffering from confusion and social isolation, being embraced by friends and ostracized by them, having teachers you like and ones you don’t like - all these are moments that have been experienced by British kids and also by North American kids and people the world over.”
Unlike other notable film franchises, there is a continuing consensus among critics that the Potter films have continued to maintain their high standards - Newsweek Magazine suggested last week that they keep getting better. Now, with only two more Potter films left to make, Heyman is cautiously optimistic these standards will be maintained.
“So far, so good,” he says.
“What I’m proud of is that I feel the films are continuing to develop and we’re not just resting on any laurels. We’re not just churning them out. I’m proud of the films - each one. I think the actors are developing. I think the kids in this film are better than in any previous films. I’m excited about the next two. We’re not there yet, but I’m excited about beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel - which is both an exciting thing and at the same time really scary and a little sad. Because there will come a point when it’s all over.”
In an interview with The Telegram, Harry Potter Producer David Heyman reminisced about the early days of the film franchise, when a number of directors were keen on turning Harry, Hermione, and Ron into Americans and changing Hogwarts to a Hollywood high school. But Heyman, who optioned the first book in 1997, insisted that the film stay true to the book's English identity, and the payoff has been huge.
"Hollywood is risk-adverse and what makes them feel secure is to have an American in the lead," Heyman said. "This was before Harry Potter was the big phenomenon that he became, so they were entitled to that view. But for me, it would have destroyed the stories.
"For me, one of the things I responded to in these books is their Englishness. The story is very English. It has cultural specificity, but it has thematic and emotional universality."
ARTICLE: Harry almost went Hollywood
Wizard not the same with a Yankee doodle accent
CanWest News Service-London
Can you imagine the world of Harry Potter being relocated to a trendy Hollywood high school?
Don’t laugh. In the days when the J.K. Rowling books were becoming international best-sellers and Hollywood was starting to see them as a potential cash cow, one Tinseltown filmmaker said he was ready to take on the project - but only if the Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry acquired an American identity and became a reworking of Beverly Hills 90210.
Another filmmaker reluctantly conceded that if the first film, Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone, was to be made, it would probably have to retain its English setting - but in order to make the movie palatable, it would be necessary to turn Harry into an American.
And there was a further proposal - that Harry’s two friends, Hermione and Ron, should also be American because kids in the U.S. needed home-grown heroes who didn’t have funny accents.
British producer David Heyman winces at these memories, but he doubts that any such proposal could have made it to first base.
To begin with, Rowling had initially been reluctant to make a movie deal of any kind because she didn’t trust Hollywood. Secondly, Heyman was there to protect her interests - to make sure that the movies would retain their British sensibility, use a British cast and be shot in the U.K.
In a sense, Heyman has been a keeper of the grail for the reclusive author.
That was how he won the rights to the books in the first place - by pledging the movies would be true to their originals. But 10 years ago, he had no concept of Harry’s potential.
“I optioned the book in 1997,” he remembers. “What happened was that there was an article in a book publishing magazine, and a woman in my office read the article, called up the book’s agent, and a copy of The Philosopher’s Stone came in. It lay on the bottom shelf - our priority low point place - for several weeks.”
Heyman’s office was constantly seeking out potential film material from the piles of new books.
But it wasn’t until his secretary became so fed up with the “rubbish” she had been reading that she decided to take the Potter book home. At the firm’s Monday meeting, she reported that she had enjoyed this novel about a young boy in wizard school.
“I thought - what a great idea,” Heyman says now. “I read it and thought - this is fantastic. But I had no idea then that it would become the phenomenon it has become.”
Still, once he had optioned the film rights, he knew he had a responsibility to safeguard the interests of Rowling and the books.
He understands why there were proposals for an Americanized Harry Potter, pointing out that the American film industry tends to be insular-looking in such matters.
Some Hollywood pundits still deplore the fact that James Bond is not portrayed by American stars; more recently, the estate of British author C.S. Lewis blocked efforts to give the film versions of the Narnia Chronicles an American setting.
Currently, there is controversy over plans to star Tom Cruise in a movie about the Battle of Britain.
“Hollywood is risk-adverse and what makes them feel secure is to have an American in the lead,” Heyman says. He’s prepared to forgive industry colleagues for proposing an Americanized Harry Potter. “This was before Harry Potter was the big phenomenon that he became, so they were entitled to that view. But for me, it would have destroyed the stories.
“For me, one of the things I responded to in these books is their Englishness. The story is very English. It has cultural specificity, but it has thematic and emotional universality.”
“The stories and themes in the books are relatable.
“We’ve all been through having our first crush, having our first kiss, suffering from confusion and social isolation, being embraced by friends and ostracized by them, having teachers you like and ones you don’t like - all these are moments that have been experienced by British kids and also by North American kids and people the world over.”
Unlike other notable film franchises, there is a continuing consensus among critics that the Potter films have continued to maintain their high standards - Newsweek Magazine suggested last week that they keep getting better. Now, with only two more Potter films left to make, Heyman is cautiously optimistic these standards will be maintained.
“So far, so good,” he says.
“What I’m proud of is that I feel the films are continuing to develop and we’re not just resting on any laurels. We’re not just churning them out. I’m proud of the films - each one. I think the actors are developing. I think the kids in this film are better than in any previous films. I’m excited about the next two. We’re not there yet, but I’m excited about beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel - which is both an exciting thing and at the same time really scary and a little sad. Because there will come a point when it’s all over.”