‘Harry Potter’ 2.0: How Warner Bros. Plans to Keep the Magic Alive With a New HBO Series, Video Games and Pricey Merch
In a grand mahogany kitchen just outside London, there’s Harry Potter magic at work. Pots are steaming, whisks are whirring and the air is thick with sugar. In one corner, shelves are stacked with glass jars full of treats, not unlike those you might find in Honeydukes, the popular candy store in the “Harry Potter” film series. Dotting the room are other whimsical objects Potter fans will recognize: the Sorting Hat, a Triwizard trophy and Godric Gryffindor’s sword.
But the figures darting hurriedly between the props and the culinary equipment aren’t house elves. They’re contestants on the competition show “Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking,” which bows Nov. 14 on Food Network and Max.
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“Wizards of Baking,” produced by Warner Horizon Television, is expected to arrive with little fanfare. But its debut kicks off a carefully orchestrated effort by Warner Bros. to launch a next wave of Harry Potter products, ranging from TV series to video games to theme parks to high-end merchandise and live experiences.
The goal is ambitious. Warner Bros. needs to extend the franchise, born in 1997 with the first installment of J.K. Rowling’s bestselling novel series, with fresh spins on the characters and worlds that Potter fans know and love. The studio’s blueprint for revitalizing the Potter universe will culminate in the biggest risk of all: the scripted “Harry Potter” TV series targeted for debut on HBO in 2026.
Kicking off the campaign with “Wizards of Baking” is a hat tip to WarnerMedia and Discovery’s beginnings: Those two giants came together in a $43 billion merger in 2022 precisely to mine new riches by marrying Warner Bros.-controlled properties with Discovery’s strong lineup of lifestyle channels.
The prospect of bringing a taste of Hogwarts into Food Network has been a dream of the channel’s leader, Betsy Ayala. “When the merger happened, the Potter IP was first and foremost in my mind,” Ayala says. “So I immediately called Dan Sacks at Warner Horizon and was like, ‘What do you think about us doing “Harry Potter” together with Food?’ And he was like, ‘I was actually thinking the same thing.’ So we immediately hit the ground running.”
Hosted by actors James and Oliver Phelps, who played the mischievous twin-brother wizards Fred and George Weasley in the “Harry Potter” movies, “Wizards of Baking” will challenge professional bakers to produce elaborate cakes that taste great and tell a story that reflects Potter’s Wizarding World.
“You’re really asking them to bring the story alive,” explains Carla Hall, a veteran foodie who will serve as a judge for the series alongside chef Jozef Youssef and a weekly guest judge.
The show is a significant investment for Food Network. For starters, it’s shot at Leavesden Studios, on the original movie sets that were home to the eight blockbuster “Harry Potter” features released by Warner Bros. Pictures from 2001 to 2011.
In the years since, Warner Bros. has struggled with its Potter-adjacent film series based on Rowling’s “Fantastic Beasts” novels. Big-budget titles released in 2016, 2018 and 2022 generated little heat at the global box office. More recently, Rowling herself has become an obstacle to the future of the franchise because of the author’s anti-trans public statements. (Jude Law recently told Variety that it’s unlikely more “Fantastic Beasts” movies will ever be made.)
But Warner Bros. was encouraged last year by the strong response from Potter fans to the new video game “Hogwarts Legacy,” which wound up the top-selling game of 2023 and has crossed 30 million units sold as of last month. The Warner Bros. Games division has also churned out “Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions,” released in August, and a remastered version of the “Lego Harry Potter” collection of games. It has awarded licenses for multiple mobile games to be developed based on the Wizarding World. And Warner Bros. Games is at work on a video game sequel to “Hogwarts Legacy,” which is a “very big priority” for Warner Bros. Discovery’s C-suite.
“We have known for some time that fans are looking for more things in this world, and so we’re spending a lot of time thinking about that,” says David Haddad, president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “Our insights tell us that there are not huge distinctions between a younger version of a fan and an older version of a fan. They’re just deep ‘Harry Potter’ fans, and we try to build authentic experiences to delight them.”
Rowling is not involved in managing the franchise, but WBD executives keep her updated via her literary agent. “If we’re going to ever go beyond a canon conversation, we make sure that we’re all comfortable with what we’re doing,” says Robert Oberschelp, Warner Bros. Discovery’s head of global consumer products.
Haddad says the games team has been coordinating some of the big-picture storytelling elements in the “Hogwarts Legacy” sequel with the storylines that will play out in the “Harry Potter” HBO series coming from Warner Bros. Television. He notes that the success of “Hogwarts Legacy” helped stoke confidence that the time was right to make a major Potter push: “The rest of the company was very curious about what we helped to unlock with ‘Hogwarts Legacy’ last year.”
Over in Warner Bros. Discovery’s Experiences division, the Potter priority is Epic Universe, the long-gestating Universal theme park in Orlando, Fla., that is scheduled to open in May. A big chunk of the 750-acre site will be devoted to Potter-themed rides and experiences.
Epic Universe has been in the works for some time — since long before the current regime took over at Warner Bros. Discovery — but it’s coming to fruition just in time to coincide with the larger Potter plan. “These things take at least five, six, seven, eight years, depending on the size and the scope,” says Peter van Roden, WBD’s executive VP of global themed entertainment. “Something like Epic is a massive undertaking.”
While millennials have — and will likely always be — the Potter demo, van Roden says the franchise aims to target fans as young as age 5, with the “sweet spot” starting around 7 or 8.
“You have to really remind yourself that it’s ever evolving, and nothing you’re doing is ever going to live forever,” he says. “You have to always think about what’s new and different in the trends that are happening.”
And then there’s the merch, which ranges from baby clothes at H&M to a $499 replica of the magical Mirror of Erised at Pottery Barn. More such items are in the works. With the HBO adaptation on the horizon, Oberschelp thinks a new generation of Potterheads will be brought into the fold — and the stores.
Inevitably, Warner Bros. will profit from fans who love the classic “Harry Potter” material as well as the new iterations. The trajectory of another famous figure in the Warner Bros. vault offers an example, Oberschelp says. The Dark Knight has remained a cool character for more than 75 years. “How many different Batmans are there?” he says. In time, he hopes fans will wind up asking one another, “What Harry are you?”
For now, fans will have to satisfy themselves with “Wizards of Baking.” The participants have traded wands for whisks, but the artistry does not disappoint, according to Oliver Phelps. Some of the edible dioramas are larger than a television set. “I don’t think I’ve been on such a busy set in my life,” says Phelps. He counted 15 cameras — including a crane — in the kitchen alone. “It’s not a small production.”
Each episode is filmed over two consecutive days. The first — in the kitchens — is shot on Stage B, where the Great Hall scenes in the movies were made. The judging takes place the following night, which means the bakers have to ensure their cakes stay fresh for more than a day. “If you have a mousse, we’re judging you based on when we eat it, not what it was when you made it,” Hall warns. “So that’s a real challenge.” “Wizards of Baking” will also feature guest judges from the cast of the “Harry Potter” films, including Warwick Davis (who played Professor Flitwick), Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley) and Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood). While they may not be haute cuisine connoisseurs, their job, says Hall, is to “bring the memories of ‘Harry Potter.’” She adds, “I want them to say, ‘Wow, I never thought I could eat this scene!’”
Those who know the Wizarding World best say it has not lost its magic. “It has transcended time and language,” Wright observes. “You’ll meet families who don’t really agree on much, but they all love Harry Potter together.”
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