Harry Potter Behind-the-Scenes Secrets (3 of 5)

Kitty Had A Magical Adventure

Going away to boarding school isn’t a walk in the park. It’s kind of like summer camp with a lot more homework. They can also send you to your room without dinner, which is totally lame. What are you supposed to do if you want some company but all your friends are busy flying on broomsticks? You might as well talk to your cat that you brought along.

Hogwarts students love their pets, but sometimes they have their own adventures to explore. It turns out even an Animagus needed some space for a few days. They should have at least checked in with the director first. What if they missed their big scene?
  

They Were Well Travelled Birds

Owls are kind of a big deal. Not only are they great hunters, but they also love to deliver magical letters! One of the most famous owls in the world is Harry’s pet Hedwig. While she had some mysterious origins, she and Harry met in the UK. That doesn’t necessarily mean that was her original home. As it turns out, the owls used in the movies were from abroad!

Straight from the United States, the entire feathered cast delivered some unforgettable performances. They were all a real hoot. Their accents may have gotten in the way though and ruined the fantasy. It’s a good thing the British owl voiceovers were cheap. Hogwarts always was known to bridge the gaps between communities.
  

Laziness Is No Excuse, Tom

The Harry Potter series encouraged millions of people to get back into reading. Not only was it a revolution it got fans into the wizarding mindset. There are no phones or computers at Hogwarts! Not every witch and wizard got that memo. As it turns out, Draco Malfoy was too cool for school. He even thought that before he put on his first robes.

Despite never reading the books before landing the role, Draco’s actor wowed the crew. They do say Slytherins are cunning and creative. However, after starring in eight films, surely he had some time to brush up on his reading. We’re almost positive a professor or two assigned it as homework.
  

They Had To Write Essays?

It’s hard to imagine any other actors playing the big three. Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, and Daniel Radcliffe were perfectly cast. At least, that’s what we tell ourselves. Things could have turned out a lot differently if there were changes. To defend their roles, it seems these three went the extra mile. To prove they were their characters, it seems they unconsciously summoned them to the page.

What better way to prove you’re supposed to be Hermione than by writing a novella about her? Harry and Ron also happened to have an in-character response to the assignment. This all sounds completely in character for them. Just imagine if we had someone like Amanda Bynes playing our favorite witch student.
  

Ugly People Have Ugly Homes

Interior design can be a tricky and complicated thing. For all the negligence it receives as a career, it’s actually a very cerebral job. Yes, an important part is putting your client’s comfort first. You also have to incorporate their personality into everything you do. Every room isn’t just four walls and a ceiling. It’s a blank puzzle waiting for just the right pieces to be added.

When you have to design an entire home for some of the rudest people imaginable what do you do? Obviously, you look for furniture as gross as their insides. The trouble is, some of the stuff in the Dursley’s house could be cute. Maybe it’s the air of unpleasantness that made it all look so ghastly?
  

Mission Impossible: The Magical Edition

When Potter fever caught on there didn’t seem to be a cure. The books were flying off the shelves. All of the theaters were packed with fans waiting to see the Prisoner of Azkaban. This franchise had made billions so far and showed no signs of slowing down. While it’s a global powerhouse now, that wasn’t always the case. Back in the early days of the film, some people thought tech beat magic.

Who would want to watch a movie with others when you can just steal it with a crappy recording? It’s a good thing some muggles stepped in to save the day (kind of). With night-vision goggles becoming a norm in some theaters it begs for a different question: what type of budget do these places have? Are they hiring?
  

It’s Raining Fire At Lunch Again

A key difference between Hogwarts and most other schools isn’t just the magic. When you’re attending a boring old public school, you normally have terrible overhead lighting. When it comes to going for a semester or two in an ancient castle, that’s not really the case. It’s actually a bit more dangerous than just taking poorly lit photos. For one thing, there are no outlets to charge your phone.

For another, sometimes the lights may cause severe burns to your scalp! While people on-set couldn’t magic the candles to float, some helpful wires worked. The problem is, they only worked for a little while. Then gravity took over and things got messy (and a bit scorched).
  

Was This Foreshadowing?

He Who Should Not Be Named is kind of a huge deal. This magical master of evil is a central figure in the Harry Potter saga. While being the biggest bad imaginable can be selfishly rewarding it’s still not without problems. What happens when you want to take a holiday or two off? Everyone deserves a break, even the noseless embodiment of death and destruction.

Well, why not just abscond somewhere for an entire movie? Some sub-plot can take over just once to give you a well-earned breather. You can’t let your foes forget about you entirely. Just hang up an expertly painted portrait somewhere. You can still keep an eye on people and look fabulous at the same time.
  

Ad-Libs Are Hilarious

Scriptwriting can be really difficult. Capturing an entire world’s essence on the page is a daunting task. That’s probably why breaking into Hollywood, much like Gringotts, is no easy feat. No matter how skilled you are as a writer, there’s always a hurdle or two in your way from a solid script and greatness. Just like working with animals, when you have people on set things may not go according to the words on the page.

Actors may have some ideas of how their characters would react to a situation. Other times they just forget what they were supposed to say. That’s where the true magic of movies happens. Ad-libbed lines aren’t just unpredictable, they can also be lightning in a bottle!
  

A Truly Accurate Weasley Gift

The fiery-haired Weasleys are an interesting bunch. In the wizarding world, they’re known to be eccentric. To muggles (that’s most of y’all) they’re downright kooky. This clan of witches and wizards is fiercely loyal to one another. They also have a pretty unique taste in, well, everything. For example, they have a clock that tells everyone’s location instead of time.

Some of them even have an absurd love of knick-knacks. This translated to the actors too. Ron, Harry and Hermione’s close buddy, was also a great friend (almost always). Even off-camera he seemed to love his co-stars. That love translated in a weird way one day. Instead of chocolates, flowers, or cars, he gave a gift that nobody could forget.
  

Americans Not Allowed

The Harry Potter books were already popular when the films began production. It should come as no surprise that big-name actors wanted to get in on the action. Some even offered to act with no pay! Unfortunately, Rowling was very specific about who was allowed to take part in the Wizarding universe. Americans, and other non-Brits, were strictly prohibited.

The only possible exception was Devon Michael Murray, known as Seamus Finnigan, who was born in Ireland. But you’ve got to cast an Irish actor to play an Irish character, right? Ireland was close enough to make the cut, but Rosie and Robin were just too foreign to fit in.