Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson are coming back to Hogwarts. In the first photo from HBO Max's Harry Potter reunion special, nostalgia can be felt as the three main characters of the movie franchise were seen in one place together.
Harry Potter: Return to Hogwarts is the reunion special for the franchise that took the world by storm. To be aired on January 1, 2022 exclusively at HBO Max, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson were seen returning to the Gryffindor common in the magical teaser shared on Instagram on Wednesday.
"Like they never left," captioned by HBO Max, the streamer surprised Potterheads all over the world in November when it announced that a reunion special would be airing in 2022 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the movie franchise's first film, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, which aired in cinemas around the world in November 2001. The reunion special will be featuring brand new in-depth interviews and conversations between the cast members about the making-of of the widely popular franchise.
Other notable alums such as Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Robbie Coltrane, Gary Oldman, Jason Isaacs, Tom Felton, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Bonnie Wright, Mark Williams, Matthew Lewis, Evanna Lynch, Alfred Enoch, and the first and second movie's director, Chris Columbus, will also make an appearance in the special.
However, the mind behind Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling, was not scheduled to appear in the anniversary special. The author recently came under scrutiny for her anti-trans comments. She will reportedly be featured in some capacity via archival footage.
The first trailer for the HBO special was released on December 5. Right after HBO Max posted the trailer and announced the upcoming reunion special, Emma Watson shared on Instagram several throwback photos of her time during filming the movie franchise with Daniel, Rupert, and other cast and crew members and professed her unconditional love once again for her celebrated character, Hermione Granger. She captioned the series of photos saying, "Harry Potter was my home, my family, my world and Hermione (still is) my favorite fictional character of all time. I think a journalist once said it was irritating how many times during an interview I mentioned how lucky I was and started counting… BUT I DAMN WELL KNEW!!! And still know. I am proud not just of what we as a group contributed as actors to the franchise but also as the children that became young adults that walked that path. I look at my fellow cast members now and I am just so proud of who everyone has become as people. I am proud we were kind to each other that we supported one another and that we held up something meaningful. Thank you to the fans that have continued to show their support well after the last chapter closed. The magic of the world wouldn’t exist without you. Thank you for fighting to make it such an inclusive and loving place. I still miss the crew who made these films all the time. Thank you for all of your hard work too - I know your contributions sometimes get overlooked. Happy 20th Anniversary Potterheads! We hope you enjoy the Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts which will stream New Year’s day, Jan. 1 on HBO Max. Lots to look forward to. E x"
