I Just Don’t Want To Do The Clean Hollywood Version

David Fincher reveals that he pitched a creepier version of the Harry Potter movies. Chris Columbus was ultimately chosen to direct the adaptation of the first Harry Potter book and went on to direct Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets as well. However, many well-known directors were considered to helm the movie adaptation of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, including Steven Spielberg, M. Night Shyamalan, Rob Reiner, Terry Gilliam, and Tim Robbins. Fincher, who had already directed Se7en and Fight Club at that point in his career, was also considered.

While speaking with Variety, Fincher explained that he was invited by Warner Bros. to pitch his creative vision for Harry Potter. He recalls how he emphasized that he did not want to “do the clean Hollywood version of it” and wanted the movie to be reminiscent of the 1987 dark comedy film Withnail and I. Warner Bros. was not receptive to this idea and explained that they wanted the adaptation to be more traditional. Check out Fincher’s comments below:

I was asked to come in and talk to them about how I would do “Harry Potter.” I remember saying, “I just don’t want to do the clean Hollywood version of it. I want to do something that looks a lot more like ‘Withnail and I,’ and I want it to be kind of creepy.” They were like, “We want Thom Browne schooldays by way of ‘Oliver’.”

What This Means For Harry Potter

David Fincher’s Harry Potter Would Have Been Completely Different And Likely Less Successful

The Harry Potter movies would have been much darker and likely not as well-received under Fincher’s direction. While there are dark Harry Potter moments in Sorcerer’s Stone, especially when Professor Quirinus Quirrell reveals that Lord Voldemort is on the back of his head, it is more of a fun, charming, and feel-good introduction to the Wizarding World. The story gets darker as Harry and his friends grow older, but it is not meant to start out as overtly creepy or as darkly humorous.

Much of the Harry Potter movies’ appeal and success was that they were coming-of-age stories that were family-friendly and accessible for children. This would not have been the case if Fincher’s more subversive take on the source material came to fruition. The first Harry Potter movie’s box office and overall reception would probably have been far worse, with these negative results potentially even jeopardizing the opportunity to adapt the rest of the Harry Potter books.

Chris Columbus Becoming The Director Instead Was A Better Outcome

While I can understand Fincher’s desire to adapt Harry Potter in an unconventional way, it is for the best that his pitch did not move forward, and that Columbus directed Sorcerer’s Stone instead. The first Harry Potter movie would not have been as faithful to the source material or as successful with Fincher as the director. Not being chosen to direct Harry Potter was also a better outcome for Fincher, as he is better-suited to directing darker standalone movies like Se7en, Fight Club, and Gone Girl.

Source: Variety

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Harry Potter

Harry Potter is a multimedia franchise about an orphaned boy who enrolls at Hogwarts School of Wizardry, where he learns the truth about himself, his family, and the terrible evil that haunts the magical world. Adapted from the novels, Harry Potter is an eight-episode film saga that follows the journey of Harry Potter and his friends, Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley, as they navigate the tricky world of growing up, school life, and magic. Starting from year one and moving to their seventh year, the films chronicle the students’ time at Hogwarts while unfurling a sinister plot that centers around the unsuspecting Harry. With the return of the dark wizard, Voldemort, the students and professors at Hogwarts will fight to carry on as the world around them may change forever. Harry Potter has expanded beyond the world of its films and novels with several video games, a spin-off film series titled Fantastic Beasts, and even attractions at Universal Studios.

Cast

Daniel Radcliffe
, Emma Watson
, Rupert Grint
, Tom Felton
, Alan Rickman
, Matthew Lewis
, Bonnie Wright
, Evanna Lynch
, Maggie Smith
, Michael Gambon
, Richard Harris
, Ralph Fiennes
, Helena Bonham Carter
, Alfred Enoch
, Harry Melling
, Gary Oldman
, Robert Pattinson
, Warwick Davis
, Oliver Phelps
, James Phelps
, David Bradley
, David Thewlis
, Katie Leung
, Jason Isaacs
, Imelda Staunton
, David Tennant
, Jamie Campbell Bower
, Timothy Spall
, Robbie Coltrane
, Eddie Redmayne
, Jude Law
, Katherine Waterston
, Ezra Miller
, Dan Fogler
, Alison Sudol
, Johnny Depp
, Mads Mikkelsen

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