Deathly Hallows May Be Two Movies
January 15, 2008

The Mail on Sunday, a London paper, reports this week that the crew currently making the sixth Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, have been told the film planned for the seventh and final novel in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows may actually be two films. This kind of a move has been rumored before, most notably for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, but that ended up being only one movie. With the seventh book ending arguably the most profitable franchises of all time, Warner Brothers can hardly be blamed for trying to create an eighth film and it will be very difficult to pare the dense Deathly Hallows down to one film, so this rumor definitely has some credence.

Another interesting part of the rumor is that the studio is supposedly seeking a very high-profile director like Stephen Spielberg or possibly Guillermo Del Toro to make the final Deathly Hallows film, in the hope of taking home a lot of Oscars like the final film in the Lord of the Rings saga. New York Magazine notes that there's a perfect place to split the books, at page 379, right when Harry discovers the Sword of Gryffindor, Ron returns, and the locket gets destroyed. As New York notes, the first film would get all of the camping out of the way and focus on the relationship between Harry, Ron, and Hermione but with a couple of great set pieces including the wedding, the raid on the Ministry of Magic, and the snake attack in Godric's Hollow. This would make the second film all action.

A film source tells the Mail, "There's so much to fit that the view is the last movie should be in two halves. There is a huge battle when Harry, played by Daniel Radcliffe, takes on Voldemort that needs to be done really well."

The Harry Potter movies have been insanely profitable and increasingly critically acclaimed for Warner Brothers. The first film, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is still the most profitable in the States, making $317.6 million and $976.5 million worldwide. 2002's Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets made $262 million domestically and $879 million worldwide. 2004's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban made $249.5 million stateside and $795.5 million around the globe. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire reversed the downward trend and made $290 million in the States in 2005 and $896 million worldwide. Finally, last summer's Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix became the most successful film since the first, making $292 million in the States and $938.5 million worldwide. The numbers are courtesy of Box Office Mojo and don't even reflect profits from DVD, cable, or other markets. Can you blame Warner Brothers for wanting to extend the franchise?

For other movie news, make sure to read the latest on The Bucket List, The Golden Globes, and Public Enemies.