'Harry Potter': What is the secret to the boy wizard's success?
Published Jul 8 2011, 00:30 BST | By Simon Reynolds
© PA Images / Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire
Since its debut on the big screen in 2001 with Chris Columbus's Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone the films have pleased die-hard fans, critics and cinemagoers, pulling in more than $6 billion at the worldwide box office.
This phenomenal achievement begs the question: What is the secret to Harry Potter's success?
Digital Spy attended the world premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 to ask stars Rupert Grint, Jason Isaacs, Matthew Lewis, David Thewlis, Imelda Staunton, Miriam Margolyes, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps and director David Yates why Harry Potter has struck a chord with so many people across the globe.
Harry Potter world premiere coverage:
> 'Harry Potter Deathly Hallows: Part 2' world premiere: In Pictures
> 'Harry Potter' fever: Fans flood Trafalgar Square for world premiere
> Rupert Grint: 'Harry Potter' support is crazy
> 'Harry Potter' Weasley twins: 'Voldemort is the definition of evil'
> 'Harry Potter' Matthew Lewis: 'I was terrified filming Voldemort scenes'
> Jason Isaacs: 'Harry Potter Deathly Hallows 2 a triumphant exit'
> Daniel Radcliffe: 'Harry Potter Deathly Hallows 2 is light years ahead
> 'Harry Potter Deathly Hallows: Part 2' - Watch the world premiere
> 'Harry Potter' star David Thewlis: 'Fans don't recognise me'
> 'Harry Potter' Imelda Staunton: 'Films are fantastic'
I just can't see how a book with a low print run can possibly reach those heights. Nothing becomes that popular without being whored to within an inch of it's life. They are certainly not any great work of literature, by any standards.
July 10th 2011 at 6:26pm
Yeah, I think it's possible. It's surprising how many big success happen by a combination of blind luck and stuff happening at the right time, especially in the fantasy genre.
July 10th 2011 at 6:18pm
You don't really believe that do you?
July 10th 2011 at 6:08pm
Oddly enough, from what I can gather the first one wasn't massively pushed and had quite a short print one. It seems to have taken off via a combination of some favourable reviews and word of mouth, amost the old fashioned way.
July 10th 2011 at 6:07pm
The secret to his original success, I imagine, was spending a **** load of the advertising budget on getting the books into schools. Kids are ignorant & will eat any kind of excrement that is rubbed in their face enough. I am willing to bet that it was pushed extremely hard on one of those school book club periodicals.
The secret to his theatrical success is that only family movies get made these days, as the studios have wiped out any competition to vacuous ***** like Potter. Why get one adult in to the cinema when you can get a whole family? Never mind the quality, so with nowhere else to go & with adjustments for inflation, & higher ticket prices, not to mention even higher ticket prices for 3D (insert name of generic ******** here) is the biggest hit of all time.
July 10th 2011 at 3:19am