The trailer for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is here giving us our first look at the revival series coming to HBO Max this December.

This rather ambitious series plans to adapt one Harry Potter book per season with an all-new cast taking over the reigns. Newcomers Dominic McLaughlin , Arabella Stanton, and Alastair Stout will portray Harry, Hermione, and Ron as they step into the world of magic and uncover Hogwarts' hidden secrets. 

Overall, reactions are quite mixed. Potterheads are eager to reunite with these beloved characters, expressing nostalgia they have for the original books and movies, and even giving their seal of approval to the new cast.

On the other hand, many feel that the original movies are classics and have no business being remade. "Nobody in their wildest dreams would ever consider redoing the original Star Wars trilogy because of the nostalgia it holds. Why in their right minds would they ever recreate this whole HP series?," said one commentor on HBO Max's post. 

There's also the question about how the trailer looks.

Many were quick to comment on the moody/dark visuals, a stark contrast to the warmly lit and altogether whimsical feel of the original Sorcerer's Stone movie. Whereas the original felt like a movie for children, based on a recent children's book, this new series feels like it's for older millennials who grew up with the books 20+ years ago. Desaturated color tones have been a trend in shows and movies for several years now and it's even more apparent when you put a clip of the trailer and the movie side by side. 

the contrast is insane pic.twitter.com/wbHHf4odOo

— Axel in Dune Mode🦇 (@AxelTalksFilm) March 25, 2026

Given the longer runtime of a television series over a movie, it's expected that this new HBO Max series will cover each book in greater detail than the movies did. If this is the case, that is one advantage the series has over the movies, because as of now, many of the sets and visuals are quite reminiscent of the former. The reason for this is most likely linked to Universal's Harry Potter theme parks which have a very specific look and feel. 

you can really see how shackled to the films this has to be in terms of set design because of the theme parks. https://t.co/elyKmLqftq

— claira curtis (@clairacurtis) March 25, 2026

The elephant in the room hasn not been addressed yet which is J.K. Rowling's involvement. Rowling, an outspoken anti-trans figurehead has forced many to abandon the fandom based on her involvement. Due to this fact alone, is enough for many to not entertain anything new from Harry Potter.

With the controversies, sets and characters largely looking the same as the original movies, and even some actors returning, many are beginning to ask "why make this series at all?" If it wasn't obvious enough, it's to keep the franchise alive to make more money.

Harry Potter is still popular across the globe. 

A new Universal theme park was just built last year and Draco Malfoy even had a cultural moment in China last month. There is clearly demand for more Harry Potter but the problem is that the movies and books are complete.

Rebooting the franchise as an entirely new television series guarantees that we're getting close to a decade's worth of new Harry Potter content without creating any new source material. The question is are the fans willing to join in on the ride?