The runtime for the Harry Potter movies, but season 1's run is still limited.
New details are emerging about the HBO reboot as casting is underway, and many of these are good signs for the Harry Potter series. However, season 1's runtime continues a controversial streaming trend that doesn't bode well for its later seasons. It also raises questions about how well Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone will be adapted. Fortunately, things look promising for season 1 at least.
Harry Potter Season 1's Eight-Hour Runtime Is Shorter Than We Hoped
Shorter Seasons Are Becoming The Norm
Harry Potter season 1's runtime was recently revealed, and it seems as though the first outing will be eight hours long. That means season 1 will probably be around eight episodes, which is becoming the standard for many streaming shows. Although HBO shows like Game of Thrones used to boast 10-episode seasons, eight or nine episodes is now the norm. Some series even go down to six or seven episodes, making their shows feel more like extended movies.
Although eight hours isn't the shortest runtime Harry Potter season 1 could have, it's still somewhat disappointing.
Although eight hours isn't the shortest runtime Harry Potter season 1 could have, it's still somewhat disappointing. With Harry Potter being a proven franchise — and with the newest adaptation having plenty to cover and expand on — a 10-episode outing feels more fitting. Eight is slightly less than many fans hoped for, but there's a silver lining: Harry Potter season 1 can still successfully adapt Sorcerer's Stone in eight hours. It's the later books we have to worry about.
Harry Potter's Remake Should Have No Problem Adapting Sorcerer's Stone In Season 1
The Movie Was Pretty Faithful With 5 Fewer Hours
Although an eight-episode season feels underwhelming after the wait for HBO's Harry Potter remake, it will be more than enough to adapt Sorcerer's Stone. The first Harry Potter book is the shortest in the series, clocking it at a little over 300 pages. While season 1 needs to establish the characters and Wizarding World properly, the story is short enough to get through in eight hours. The Sorcerer's Stone movie does it effectively, and it's barely three hours long.
10 Harry Potter Side Stories That Deserve Full Episodes In HBO's Remake
Many side stories in Harry Potter are told secondhand, but audiences of HBO's TV remake deserve full episodes that dive into the nitty gritty.
Of course, the first Harry Potter movie cuts a few things, like Peeves the Poltergeist and Snape's potions trial. An additional five hours should be able to make up for those omissions, however, and even expand on certain elements of the novel. The bigger concern is whether the Harry Potter TV show will continue releasing eight-episode seasons as time goes on. Eight hours may be sufficient to do Sorcerer's Stone justice, but the later books — especially Order of the Phoenix, Half-Blood Prince, and Deathly Hallows — deserve at least 10.
Harry Potter
- Showrunner
- Francisca Gardiner
- Directors
- Mark Mylod
- Writers
- sca Gardiner
- Franchise(s)
- Harry Potter
Cast
Dominic McLaughlinHarry Potter-
Arabella StantonHermione Granger
-
Alastair StoutRon Weasley
Albus Dumbledore
Harry Potter is HBO's remake of the iconic Wizarding World film series that consisted of eight films between 2001 and 2011. Each season adapts a book from JK Rowling's popular series and provides more book-accurate details than the movies did.
