Along with the recent announcement of HBO’s Harry Potter television series, the showrunners have revealed that the series will run for 10 years, however, with only seven books within the Harry Potter series, the show will have to do some adjusting to the story and timeline. The Harry Potter franchise, about a young wizard attending a magical boarding school, first became popular with a series of seven books by British author J.K. Rowling. From 2001 to 2011, a film series adapted from the books was created starring Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson.

Recently, HBO revealed that a new Harry Potter television show would be coming to their platform with an entirely new cast and a dedication to being a faithful adaptation. Another one of the significant details mentioned by HBO about the series was that it would last for ten years, similar to how the film franchise did. Because there are only seven books in Rowling’s original series, this leads to a gap between the books and television series. This means that the creators of the HBO series will have some time to fill, likely with extra seasons.

The Harry Potter Series Needs 10 Seasons To Be A Faithful Adaptation

In order for HBO’s Harry Potter series to be a faithful adaptation of the books, it will need 10 seasons. The Warner Brothers film franchise made eight total movies, one for each book except for “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” which was split into two films. Where the Harry Potter movies cut book storylines, HBO has promised that the television series will remain completely accurate, which means they will need more time than the film franchise. Therefore, rather than seven or eight seasons, they will need 10.

It is vital for HBO to maintain its promise of staying true to the books because of the importance that detail has to fans. Although the film franchise is well-loved and popular, Harry Potter fans have always been disappointed by the films’ lack of accuracy in certain areas. If the television series were to keep every detail of the books, that would be a major win for the Harry Potter community and the series itself. To ensure that this happens and that the story can be as expanded as it was in the books, HBO will need 10 seasons, one for every year of production.

Which Harry Potter Books Need The Most Screentime

If HBO were to make 10 seasons of their Harry Potter series, they would likely need to split certain books in the series into more than one season. As previously mentioned, this occurred for the final installment of the film franchise which cut the last book into two movies. While the earlier books in the series are fairly short and can be easily covered in detail in one season, the later books have around 700-800 pages and could easily be split into two seasons in order to cover every detail and subplot included in the books.

The longest books in the Harry Potter series are “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” and “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.” Therefore, these could likely be extended into more than one season, along with the final book “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.” Not only do these books have the most content within them, but they will also need the most screen time in order to squeeze everything in with the proper pacing. By giving certain books more than one season, the showrunners won’t have to rush any storylines and the show can maintain an appropriate pace that parallels the books.

The Most Likely Season/Book Breakdown For The Harry Potter Series

In the case that HBO makes one season for each year of production over 10 years, the season-to-book breakdown would likely be as follows: one season for “The Sorcerer’s Stone,” one season for “The Chamber of Secrets”, one season for “Prisoner of Azkaban”, two seasons for “Goblet of Fire”, two seasons for “Order of the Phoenix”, one season for “Half-Blood Prince,” and two seasons for “Deathly Hallows.” This way, every season can do justice to its respective book and the adaptation will include every detail it needs to remain faithful.

There is much speculation and doubt surrounding HBO’s Harry Potter show but by making certain important choices, the series has the potential to be great for the fan community. HBO can offer a completely accurate version of Harry Potter that speaks to old fans and new ones. Creating 10 seasons for the seven-book series is just step one is making the ideal Harry Potter adaptation.