Harry Potter Behind-the-Scenes Secrets (2 of 5)

Just Magic Out The Spot

Why did the wizard ride a broom to work? His car was in the shop! Yuk, yuk, yuk (yuck). Not everyone’s a comedian. Behind every good (don’t judge us) joke there’s a grain of truth. Just because Severus Snape had a smooth set of wheels doesn’t mean he enjoyed them. That dastardly Potter and Weasley are always up to something. If their hijinks get a laugh, great. If not, what’s the next best thing?

Oh, that’s right, enraging their co-star and least/most-loved professor on-set. What we don’t get is how this happened. Did Snape park in the teacher’s lot or in public parking? How did the kids get into the car? There are so many questions. The most important being: what flavor milkshake got wasted?
  

Hard Work Really Is Magic

The locations in the Potterverse (it has a name, look it up) are pretty elaborate. Each set tells a story even when nobody’s around. Places like Hogwarts just feel scholarly. Gringotts (the bank) smells of money. The Ministry of Magic…well…it looks pretty intricate. What exactly do politics look like? Oh yeah, massive statues and thousands of painstakingly laid tiles. Nobody in the cast had their wands on construction day.

Instead of enchanting the ceramics to work, they got clever. Why save your backbone by using cardboard? With a little paint and glue, you could recreate the look of stone for cheap. It also hurt less to fall on during some big battle scenes.
  

She’s The Toughest Witch Around

Dame Maggie Smith is an absolute legend. There. That’s the whole statement. Everything else is irrelevant. Well, one more thing is pretty cool to point out, too. Not only is she a strong witch, but she’s also an incredible human being. This warrior of the stage, screen, and life know her way around a script. She also knows what it means to face death, raise a wand, and take a stand.

Even without magical powers, she has the fortitude to fight against nearly anything. She never took a leave of absence from Hogwarts. Instead, she fought for her health and the safety of the wizarding world at the same time. Could your Patronus pull that off?
  

You Must Not Sniff Catnip 

Ugh, Delores Umbridge, right? There are hardly any good memories a true Potterhead has about this character. While the actress who portrayed her was perfect, she was almost ignored in some scenes. How is that possible? Well, people get distracted when you have forty of the most adorable co-stars toddling around behind you. Apparently, those magical plates weren’t all an illusion.

Umbridge’s love of cats was so strong that forty kittens got to be actors. An entire photoshoot was done with these balls of fluff just so they could be moving plate decorations. Not only is it cute, but it’s also practical. Now they won’t get confused about who’s dish belongs to which cat. Feeding time is easy again!
  

Keeping Him In The Dark

SPOILER ALERT: you can not fight a magical war without some casualties. When you’re supposed to lead the resistance and triumph over evil, you’re almost guaranteed to survive. Right? Wait, no, really, does he live or die in the end? Up until the final films, fans and actors alike weren’t really sure. In fact, the author was keeping quite a bit close to their chest.

Things were so secretive the lead wasn’t sure how he should be acting. After a little sit-down (and some sneak-peekery) a plan was hatched. That doesn’t mean that Harry knew his own fate before the cameras rolled. Like any good epic, some surprises were best kept hidden until they were needed.
  

There’s No Age Requirement To Learning

If you ever feel too old to do something we have some sage advice: stop it. Never let your age define your goals and ambitions. If you want to go back to school then do it. If you want to grow wings and fly to Saturn, please get out of the heat and drink some water. One of those is something totally attainable.

The other requires the help of Elon Musk. Everyone has the right to learn at their own pace. If you want to be a student then go for it. If you want to live in a toilet in a castle far away, maybe enroll in school first then think things through a bit better.
  

Stunt Doubles Can Be Pricey

The life of a stunt double is fraught with danger. Enjoying being put into the heat of things is a pretty important part of that career. It’s actually part of the job description. In stunt school, they prepare these masters of mayhem to ready their bodies for almost anything. However, how do you prepare for a fifty-foot-long snake that can turn you into a living statue?

We’re fairly certain that’s not covered in the training manual. Instead of risking losing a whole cast to a magical malady, the Hogwarts crew got creative. Why waste perfectly healthy humans when you can throw a petrified copy around? It’s easier, safer, and you don’t have to answer to a union about worker’s comp.
  

A Comprehensive Guide To Numerology

Becoming a wizard takes a whole lot of work. Years of practice and study really add up, but you need supplies, too. In fact, there are entire libraries that witches and wizards have at their disposal. The tricky thing with libraries is that they’re all very different. While muggles get to have a variety of books, things are different at Hogwarts.

It turns out that students there don’t need too much variety. The headmaster usually only has books for show. At least, that’s how it is in the movies. The irony of having a library full of phone books isn’t lost on us. While at least that’s something, there’s no such thing as phones, or landlines, at the school
  

Desperate Prefects of the Great Hall

When you grow up in the wizarding world you get a few advantages. While your non-magical friends are dealing with puberty, you are off clear-skinned. Could you even imagine having to deal with a pimple before school? There’s got to be a few spells to clear that minefield. Well, apparently not. At least, not in the UK part of the magical realm.

For those of us stuck without magic, there are the wonders of technology. The big question though still stands: which of the Desperate Housewives went to Ron’s digital dermatologist? Maybe a couple of them are actually witches on a long-standing vacation! Regardless, it’s pretty impressive that non-magical folk can create a truly magical effect for pubescent teens.
  

Are Wizards Originally from Krypton

Hufflepuff is one of the best houses around. If you don’t believe us, that’s your fault. Unfortunately, it does not get as much airtime as the others. That’s probably because members of Hufflepuff are too busy being awesome to worry about fame. Besides, who needs to be famous for deeds when you have famous House members? Forget Harry Potter, Hufflepuffs almost had Superman.

Imagine an alternate timeline where a Kryptonian attended school. Oh, and not just school, but magical school! They already can fly, so there goes the Quidditch Cup. They’d probably ace Defense Against the Dark Arts, too. In fact, their only weakness would be a Slytherin with a massive green jewel collection.