The box covers of the DVDs. Photo by Jasmine Sanchez.
By Jasmine Sanchez Staff Reporter
In more recent times, Hollywood has grasped onto the idea of rebooting beloved shows and movies to make a quick profit. Some explore the cinematic world and fix errors of the past while others fail to live up to the originals.
As reboots are becoming a normal concept, announcements have become less shocking as of late. However, two big franchises have left fans speechless. “Harry Potter” and “Twilight” announced the early productions of their TV reboots. The original movies are dearly loved by some and hated by others, but fans of both franchises expressed it was too soon for a reboot of the movies.
This raises the question of whether there is even enough content within the original source material to keep a steady pace throughout the TV reboots.
Harry Potter
The streaming service HBO Max, currently being rebranded as Max, announced news of their upcoming “Harry Potter” television adaptation, based on the series of novels by author J.K. Rowling. Fans were left stunned as the original movies have left an indelible mark on popular culture. The original movie franchise, while beloved, altered various aspects from the books while also leaving out fundamental and anticipated scenes found in the series.
One of the most prominent differences comes from the characterization of all three of the main characters. Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley each suffered in their characterization throughout the movies. Some suffered more than others, as their movie counterparts tend to be a shell of who they are throughout the series.
Harry, the boy who lived, lost his flare during the transition from page to screen. His snarkiness and quips were left out entirely, his personality dwindled into a blank slate, and his emotional development hindered tremendously. The movies minimized Harry’s traumatizing experience and anguish.
Hermione is a completely different character from the version of the books. She is a flawless character, restricted from growing, and placed onto a pedestal by the director. Hermione is given many lines and aspects from other characters, thus erasing the foundation of her core character.
Ron’s character was reduced to comic relief while his book counterpart was multidimensional. His personality and character suffered the most from the movie adaptations. Many of his lines were given to other characters and the movie didn’t know how to fit the new version of the character to the story.
As the characters suffered through many changes when written for the movies, it is not the only aspect that left fans disappointed. Crucial events and moments were excluded due to screen time limitations. One event that was teased throughout various movies but never occurred on screen was the Quidditch World Cup, despite it being incredibly significant to Harry and other characters in the book. The television adaptation might be able to fix these errors by giving the characters and their development justice that was unseen from its predecessors.
Twilight
One of the more shocking announcements was from Lionsgate Television which confirmed a new adaptation of Stephanie Meyer’s “The Twilight Saga.” It is currently in the early stages of development. The series consists of five books with three companion novels and five movies.
The books follow Bella Swan, a normal teenage girl who falls in love with a boy named Edward Cullen. Her world is turned upside down when she soon learns that he is a vampire. Turning “Twilight” into a TV series could lead to some horrendous pacing. The show would primarily focus on the relationship between Bella and Edward, but the problem lies with the rapid progression of the original series. The pacing of the overall story works well in the books and films, but the TV adaptation may suffer if every variable is not considered.
The average number of episodes for a TV series, made for streaming, varies between eight to 13. The standard length of an episode is around 37 minutes to a full hour. The series must maintain a steady pace while compellingly capturing the audience’s attention. However, if structured like this, the story and Bella and Edwards overall relationship will be crammed into a very short timeframe.
Not to mention, the portrayal of the shapeshifters, individuals descended from ancient spirit warriors from the Quileute Tribe, is a major aspect that would have to be changed as it is dredged in harmful and offensive stereotypes. The Quileute Tribe, a real Indigenous tribe in the United States, are depicted as emotional and violent after their shifter gene, an extra chromosome presumed to carry the gene needed for the shape-shifting ability, is activated. They are forced to cut their hair due to the length corresponding with the length of their fur, despite the cultural significance, stripping themselves of their culture and identity.
The movies touch upon important aspects of the books and pace the storyline as well as it could. The television adaptation has the potential to delve deeper into the Cullens’ backstory, explore relationships more thoroughly, and offer complexity towards minor characters. However, the issues the adaptation would face might bypass the audience’s interest if not handled correctly. Taking in these hurdles, a TV adaptation appears to be unnecessary.
The reboots for Harry Potter and Twilight are currently in the early stages of production. For better or worse, they will grace the screens of television and possibly overshadow the originals. As the future is uncertain, only time will tell.