The Harry Potter franchise was one of the defining film franchises of the 21st century. When Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone opened in theaters, it set the opening weekend record at the time. It was the rare blockbuster franchise and family film series that also got positive reviews from critics.
The movies were a global phenomenon, with every entry met with high anticipation from audiences. In many ways, it anticipated countless big franchises, from The Hunger Games and The Maze Runner to Divergent, Twilight, and Percy Jackson; the success of Harry Potter inspired every studio to attempt to launch their own family fantasy story and YA franchise. In many ways, Harry Potter laid the groundwork for the pop culture dominance of the MCU.
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Harry Potter and the Death Hallows: Part 2
Warner Bros. Pictures
The final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released in July 2007 around the same time the fifth movie Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix hit theaters. The book itself was a huge deal and to this day still holds the Guinness World Record for most books sold in 24 hours. This meant that the film’s potential could be massive, and the studio eventually decided to split the final book into two parts, with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 1 set for release on November 19, 2010, and the final film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 on July 15, 2011.
The release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 was highly anticipated, as it was one of the few cases where the audience going into the movie know it was going to be the final entry. For an audience who spent 10 years invested in the Harry Potter series and likely grew up with the films, this was more than a big summer movie but a cinematic event. It set the opening weekend record at the time with $169 million and went on to gross $1.342 billion worldwide making it the highest grossing film of 2011, the highest grossing film in the Harry Potter franchise, and to this day is still the highest grossing film from Warner Bros. at the worldwide box office.
Ten years later, the Harry Potter brand has taken some damage in recent years due to the underperformance of the Fantastic Beasts spin-offs and the controversial comments by series author J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2. Despite all this, it still remains a beloved classic among many, and even after all these years, with so many other franchises having made their grand conclusions, something about Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 still remains incredibly special.
The Decision to Split Deathly Hallows Helps the Story
The first printing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is about 607 pages, a large book as the result of being the last entry in the franchise there are many storylines that needed to be wrapped up. The filmmaker’s decision to split the book into two movies helps both, as nothing feels compressed while also allowing each its own unique feel, with Part 1 breaking from the franchise convention and going for a fugitive-type story and Part 2 primarily being a war movie.
The decision to split the books also comes organically, as it allows Deathly Hallows Pt. 1 to primarily focuses on the horocrux and the characters are given the new information about the Deathly Hallows towards the end, making for a shift in the narrative quest. Dobby’s death makes for the perfect endpoint for Part 1 as it puts the heroes at their lowest point, giving the story its Empire Strikes Back moment. This allows Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 to be one giant war film at Hogwarts.
The Stakes Are Emotional and Physical
Grand epic finales tend to feature big battle scenes. The one at the end of Avengers: Endgame has become iconic for the portals opening and every MCU hero coming through, and the battle featuring a variety of cool moments. Lord of the Rings: Return of the King has many giant battle sequences. Even Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Pt. 2 adds a giant battle due to audience expectations.
While Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 also features a giant battle at Hogwarts, what is interesting is the different approach to the action sequence as opposed to the previously mentioned showdowns. The battle of Hogwarts is less about showcasing awe-inspiring displays of magic, but allowing the audience to witness the horror at Hogwarts being destroyed. Over the course of ten years and eight films, Hogwarts became iconic, and to a generation of viewers became a surrogate home they looked forward to returning to every time a new movie came out. Seeing the Quidditch pitch on fire and the courtyard destroyed are meant to hit as much as any of the character deaths. The character deaths are also displayed with a great sense of tragedy, as the audiences does not merely see a character die but discover it through Harry’s eyes, capturing that chaotic nature of war that means it is never clear who will make it out alive.
Yet this also lends to the euphoric moments of joy. Putting the emphasis on Hogwarts means the heroic moments soar, like the school’s defense systems being activated to protect the students. The various teachers and students now coming together to protect the school, and using their knowledge to their advance, particularly allowing joke character traits like Seamus Finnigan’s habit of blowing stuff up to come in handy. It is one giant climax, but instead of going for eye-popping spectacle it goes for a more emotional punch, trusting the audiences’ attachment to the characters and the setting of Hogwarts to carry over. When the dust settles and the battle is over, Hogwarts still stands as a reminder that it will always be there for students who need it.
A Unique Circumstance Behind The Scenes
One of the things the Harry Potter franchise had going for it that most modern franchises don’t is the unique circumstance behind the movies. This was a film franchise that lasted ten years, and that allowed for a sense of nostalgia to build up for the final film as audiences had gotten to watch the main cast grow up and could look at the journey of how far they had come.
The Lord of the Rings trilogy was a massive undertaking, but they all came out all within a year of one another, so it was over before audiences could be nostalgic. Spider-Man and The Dark Knight trilogy spanned multiple years, but they also didn’t come out as frequently. Harry Potter on the other hand tended to have an installment every year, and even when it didn’t, it made the gap year feel like a long anticipated event. This in many ways laid the groundwork for the MCU, as the Infinity Saga built its hype for Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame as the pay-off of a ten-year event that audiences had grown custom to having.
It Ends the Harry Potter Story
Film endings, much like life, are rarely ever what one expects. Some stories do get to end on their own terms, like Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. Other franchises, like both the Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield-led Spider-Man films, were abruptly canceled. Sometimes a franchise gives what feels like an ending, but leaves the door open for more stories to tell like Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End and Scream 3. Star Wars has had three different endings to trilogies, and it is hard to imagine the franchise won’t continue on at some point. Many of the YA adaptations that popped up after Harry Potter rarely made it past their second book. Even Avengers: Endgame, billed as the epic conclusion to the Infinity Saga, left plenty of stories open for later movies despite wrapping up some character arcs.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 though, does give the rare, complete, proper ending. The cinematic journey that began 10 years prior truly came to an end on that day in July 2011. Despite the Wizarding World franchise continuing with the Fantastic Beast film series, we’ve seen the end of Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Their story was complete and as it looks like there are no plans to adapt Harry Potter and the Cursed Child anytime in the near future, Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 is the true ending of the series. That is what made the HBO Max Harry Potter special so monumental, as it had been over 11 years since audiences saw these actors together in this setting. Most stories keep going, but with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 audiences got the closest thing to a happily ever after ending.
