• by Todd Wasserman , December 22, 2021

Yes, it has been 20 years since the first Harry Potter movie debuted, so HBO Max is promoting "Harry Potter 20^th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts."

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone," the first movie in the series, premiered on Nov. 16, 2001. It became a huge success, grossing around $1 billion.

The new HBO film is billed as a “first-person journey through one of the most-beloved film franchises.” The film will feature Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson and Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, Ralph Fiennes, Jason Isaacs, Gary Oldman, Tom Felton, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Mark Williams, Bonnie Wright, Alfred Enoch, Ian Hart and Toby Jones, among others.

In interviews for the promo, Fiennes says he told his sister he was being asked to play Voldemort and she said: “What? You’re being asked to play Voldemort? You’ve got to do it!”

Watson said when things get really dark “there’s something about Harry Potter that makes life richer.”

The film will b available for streaming on New Year’s Day.