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Sir Ian McKellen reveals real reason why he turned down role of Dumbledore in Harry Potter

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Sir Ian McKellen reveals real reason why he turned down role of Dumbledore in Harry Potter

Actor Sir Ian McKellen has finally explained the reason why he turned down the part of Dumbledore in the Harry Potter films.

McKellen seemed like the perfect man to take on the role of the much-loved Dumbledore after Richard Harris sadly passed away in 2002.

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When McKellen turned down the opportunity to star in the popular film series, many assumed this was due to his commitments elsewhere, as he was also playing Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings movies. However, the legendary actor has now uncovered the actual reason behind his decision, and it’s not what you might expect.

It turns out that Harris, who portrayed Dumbledore for the first two Harry Potter instalments, actually disapproved of McKellen as an actor.

Talking to BBC interview show HARDtalk, McKellen said: “When he died – he played Dumbledore, the wizard – I played the real wizard [Lord of the Rings‘ Gandalf] of course…

“When they called me up and said would I be interested in being in the Harry Potter films, they wouldn’t say what part but I worked out what they were thinking.”

However, McKellen admitted: “I couldn’t take over the part from an actor who I know disapproved of me.”

According to the actor, Harris had described McKellen, as well as fellow actors Sir Derek Jacobi and Sir Kenneth Branagh, as “technically brilliant but passionless”. Eesh.

In the end, it was Sir Michael Gambon who took on the hefty role for the rest of the Harry Potter series (remember when Dumbledore suddenly picked up an Irish accent and turned a bit angry?) Meanwhile, McKellen continued to play Gandalf in both the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies.

McKellen currently stars as Cogsworth in the live-action adaptation of Beauty and the Beast, and he will also join Emily Blunt, Sylvester Stallone and Danny DeVito in voicing the upcoming animation Animal Crackers.

Daniel Radcliffe says he will “never close the door” on more Harry Potter films

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Daniel Radcliffe says he will “never close the door” on more Harry Potter films

Daniel Radcliffe has said he is “never going to close the door” on Harry Potter, and to do so would be a “stupid thing to do”.

Radcliffe made the comments while speaking to the Hollywood Reporter about his new film Imperium, in which he plays a FBI agent undercover as a neo-Nazi – a far cry from the squeaky clean boy wizard that made Radcliffe famous. As always, the subject of Harry Potter came up, and Radcliffe was asked if he would consider reprising his role in a film adaptation of the Cursed Child plays.

Tactfully, Radcliffe said: “I’m never going to close the door; that would be a stupid thing to do. But I think I’ll be happy enough and secure enough to let someone else play it.”

He added: “At the moment it’s not even a concern because I’m too young to play the character, but even in 10 years’ time I would still feel strange about going back to it.”

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is currently running at Palace Theatre on London’s West End, where it is sold out through to December 2017. The play features Harry Potter as a middle-aged ministry of magic official, struggling to keep on top of his work and the adventurous antics of youngest son Albus.

Rumours that Warner Bros. will produce a film version of the play have been rife since the Hollywood Studio registered a trademark for the title in July.

In August, the New York Daily News reported that a Hollywood insider had confirmed: “Warners is secretly working on getting the movie rights and a screenplay settled, and of course in their minds only one man should be Harry. However he has made it clear that his mind is certainly not focused on returning to the role anytime soon — and that could be until he hits 40.”

They claimed the Hollywood studio would love a film adaptation to be released “as soon as 2020”.

However, we agree with Radcliffe – any film edition starring him as Harry is going to have to wait at least a decade. Radcliffe is still a spritely 27, after all.

Empire Cinemas plan Harry Potter marathon for fans ahead of Fantastic Beasts release

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Empire Cinemas plan Harry Potter marathon for fans ahead of Fantastic Beasts release

Harry Potter fans are in for a treat from Empire Cinemas.

To celebrate the release of the newest Harry Potter universe film, Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, Empire Cinemas are showing the original eight films in cinemas across the country for eight consecutive weeks.

The Harry Potter marathon will kick off with showings of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone this Sunday, September 11 at 12pm in all thirteen Empire Cinema locations. If you’ve already got plans for the weekend, the film will be shown again on Tuesday, September 13 at 6pm.

The remaining seven weeks until the release of Fantastic Beasts on November 18 will see the seven remaining films from the franchise on the big screen on Sundays at 12pm and Tuesdays at 6pm.

That means fans will get to see Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson grow up on the big screen all over again, as we whet our appetites for the latest wizarding adventure.

Oscar-winner Eddie Redmayne stars in Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them as Newt Scamander, magizoologist and famed author of one of Harry’s school text books. The first of three films, Fantastic Beasts is expected to document Scamander’s travels in New York, as he becomes embroiled in turbulent magical politics and accidentally sets loose some dangerous magical creatures.

Marketing Director of Empire Cinemas, Jon Nutton, said: “There is a huge love for Harry Potter in the UK and with the exciting release of Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them in November, this is the perfect time to get involved in some Pottermania.”

Tickets are available to book now at www.empirecinemas.co.uk.

Warner Bros. reportedly approaching Daniel Radcliffe for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie

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Warner Bros. reportedly approaching Daniel Radcliffe for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child movie

J.K. Rowling may have expressed her reticence to make Harry Potter and the Cursed Child into a new feature film, but considering the success of the new sell-out play and accompanying best-selling book, we can’t say we’re surprised by the reports about Warner Bros. approaching Daniel Radcliffe to reprise his titular role for a new movie venture.

According to NY Daily News, Warner Bros. are already in talks to bring the West End play, which is currently playing at the Palace Theatre in London, to the big screen. And while Radcliffe has previously said that he wants to “keep some distance” between himself and the boy wizard he brought to life back in 2001, a ‘well-placed Hollywood source’ has been quoted saying:

“Warners is secretly working on getting the movie rights and a screenplay settled, and of course in their minds only one man should be Harry. However he has made it clear that his mind is certainly not focused on returning to the role anytime soon — and that could be until he hits 40”.

“Daniel had that job for over a decade with huge success and critical acclaim, but since then he has really established himself as a very strong actor with films like The Woman in Black and his Broadway work”, the source continued. “He doesn’t need to go back for money or to reboot his career, so he will need some persuading”.

So, are the rumours just rumours, or can we expect Daniel to don the round specs once more? Stay tuned for updates as we learn of them!

In the meantime, Warner Bros.’ Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is due in cinemas this November 18th. Check out the trailer below:

J.K. Rowling has already written the script for Fantastic Beasts 2 and it takes “a new direction”

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J.K. Rowling has already written the script for Fantastic Beasts 2 and it takes “a new direction”

J.K. Rowling has already written the script for the second film of her Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them trilogy, and its set to take the series “in a new direction”.

Fantastic Beasts director David Yates, who also directed the final four Harry Potter films, has said of the new script: “We’ve seen the script for Part 2, for the second movie, which takes the story in a whole new direction – as you should, you don’t want to repeat yourself.

“The second movie introduces new characters as she builds this part of the Harry Potter universe further. It’s a very interesting development from where we start out. The work is pouring out of her.”

The first film of the eagerly-anticipated new series hits cinemas this November, and stars Oscar-winner Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander, a magizoologist who accidentally sets free a group of rare and dangerous magical creatures in America, where the story is set.

Newt Scamander was briefly mentioned in the previous Harry Potter films and movies, as the author of Harry’s ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them‘ school text book. The series takes place in 1920s and novel author Rowling is the primary scriptwriter.

Redmayne’s Scamander will be joined by American witch and wizard Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterson) and Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler), as the group attempt to hunt down the missing wildlife.

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them hits cinemas on November 18, 2016.

Rumours fly that Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will become a film

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Rumours fly that Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will become a film

Rumours are rife that the West End’s new Harry Potter play is set for a Hollywood adaptation.

Warner Bros, the Hollywood studio behind the adaptations of J.K. Rowling’s famous children’s series, has recently registered a trademark for the name ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child‘ – the title of the critically-acclaimed new play.

Registering a trademark for the title could ensure that Warner Bros are the only ones licensed to produce merchandise for the series, and, more importantly – to produce films.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child has been billed as the eighth story in the franchise, and follows the antics of forty-year-old ministry employee Harry, his friends and their Hogwarts-age children.

The play began previews on June 7 and opens officially on July 31st. A preview version of the script will also be published on the same day, which is Harry Potter’s – and J.K. Rowling’s – birthday.

It’s not worth getting too excited for the Harry Potter return of Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson, however, as it seems more likely that any film deal will likely be a recording of the stage play released in cinemas.

The play instead stars Jamie Parker, Paul Thornley and Noma Dumezweni in the roles of Harry, Ron and Hermione, as well as Sam Clemmet as Harry’s son Albus and Cherrelle Skeete as Ron and Hermione’s daughter Rose.

Emma Watson’s latest film makes just £47 at the UK box office

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Emma Watson’s latest film makes just £47 at the UK box office

To be fair, it was only shown in three cinemas, but the headline that ‘Emma Watson‘s latest film only made £47 at the UK box office’ is nevertheless going to be making the rounds today.

Based on a true story, the Harry Potter star’s new role in The Colony (also titled Colonia) sees her play a young woman trying to save her boyfriend (Daniel Brühl) from a cult posing as a charitable mission, after he’s kidnapped by General Pinochet’s secret police in Chile.

We should of course explain that while it only made £47 in its opening weekend, the film’s distribution plan was based around home-streaming, which is why it has only released in three UK cinemas.

And even though it’s been widely panned by reviewers, and currently holds a score of 28% on Metacritic, we think the romantic thriller looks pretty great from the trailer.

Let’s hope Emma’s next film Beauty and the Beast fares a bit better.

The Colony is available to watch on YouTube now.

Daniel Radcliffe won’t rule out return to Harry Potter

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Daniel Radcliffe won’t rule out return to Harry Potter

The 26-year-old star of all eight Harry Potter films recently told an interviewer that although he was saying no “for now”, he was “leaving room to backtrack in the future”.

The final film in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II, was released in July 2011 and a new play written by JK Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, is currently delighting audiences in the West End. There appear to be no current plans to return the character to the big screen but Radcliffe didn’t want to scupper his chance in the future.

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He commented, “The circumstances would have to be pretty extraordinary, but then I am sure Harrison Ford said that with Han Solo [in Star Wars], and look what happened there.”

Daniel Radcliffe will star as a magician in Now You See Me 2 with Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg. Although not exactly the same type of magic, Radcliffe hadn’t noticed the connection with his most famous character until somebody else pointed it out to him:

“They were like, ‘You are going to get loads of questions about magic again,’ and I went, ‘Oh, damn, I guess I am!'”

22 times Harry Potter was totally emo

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22 times Harry Potter was totally emo

It’s tough being the chosen one…
Just ask everyone’s favourite brooding boy wonder, Harry Potter!

If you thought Robert Pattinson’s Cedric Diggory was the most emo of the Hogwarts homies, think again. In celebration of all eight Harry Potter films coming to Sky Movies on demand this weekend (24.10.15), we’re looking back at all the times in those ten magical years that HP was the biggest emo on the block.

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That time he didn’t want anyone to know he’d been crying.

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Or that time on the beach when he could’ve cried an entire ocean of tears.

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That time he was not at all graceful in the face of rejection.

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^ Look at the pain in those bespectacled eyes!!

He soon got over it though…

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Then there were all those ‘nobody gets me’ times when people simply
weren’t appreciating how hard it is to be HP.

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Whoa! This kid wields sarcasm like an Ollivander wand!

But can you blame him, with this A-hole always cropping up?

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He’d just had enough of listening to other people’s shit.

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Other people honestly talk so much garbage.

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Also, no one was respecting his privacy, and that seriously ticked him off.

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Because the chosen one deserves more. Even if Snape doesn’t get it.

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Contrary to popular belief, there’s no magic spell to cure puberty.

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All those confusing new feelings about Hermione caused him to lash out.

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He wouldn’t be the one to win her heart though.
Again, cue the ungracefulness.

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Can you really blame a kid whose home is his school, though?

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It’s totally the saddest.
The teachers aren’t even sympathetic.

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Have they met the Dursleys??

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Do they even know what he’s going through?
Surely they’d never comprehend it, anyways.

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Sure, Hermione understands, but he’s all like ‘bitch, I got this under control’.
Damn you, social expectations of masculinity!!!

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Anyway, it’s all in a day’s struggle for Prince Potter.
He shakes it off.

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The entire Harry Potter movie collection comes to Sky Movies on October 24th,
including extended versions of Philosopher’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets never before seen on UK television, behind-the-scenes specials, and interviews with stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, and the rest of the cast and crew.

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J.K. Rowling Reveals American Hogwarts

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J.K. Rowling Reveals American Hogwarts

J.K. Rowling has hinted a US version of Hogwarts will feature in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

The Harry Potter author is currently penning the screenplay for the spin-off movie and has teased an American wizarding school may be featured in the movie, which will star Eddie Redmayne as protagonist, magizoologist Newt Scamander.

In an ad hoc Q&A session on Twitter, she was asked the name of the “US school” and replied saying: “That information will be revealed in due course.”

Following the admission, fans of the series of books and films attempted to find out more information, although the best-selling writer remained secretive about the details.

When asked by a fan if Newt will visit a New York wizarding school, she wrote: “No, but he’s going to meet people who were educated at [name] in [not New York].”

Another user asked whether the school would “have any relevance to the Native American-Indian culture” to which she wrote: “If I answer that fully it will reveal the location of the school, but you can take that as a yes!”

Following further messages on the social networking site, the 49-year-old author – who has racked up 4.75 million followers – revealed “indigenous magic” will have played a key part in the school’s creation.

She added: “Oh wait – did you mean the NAME is of American Indian origin? It isn’t. The name is of immigrant origin. However, indigenous magic was important in the founding of the school. If I say which tribes, location is revealed.”

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