Anyone with any love for the Harry Potter franchise likely directs a lot of that love towards Quidditch. Throughout the Harry Potter series, it was the dramatic scenes of aerial sporting competition that stood out. When you watch the Harry Potter movies in order, it’s a shame to see Quidditch fall away in the later films.
Christopher Columbus brought Quidditch to life in some of the best movies in the Potter series, bringing color and energy to the boisterous wizarding sport. Sadly, it sounds like the Harry Potter cast wasn’t too keen on shooting these scenes.
While promoting Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire in 2005 (via MuggleNet), Daniel Radcliffe was asked if he had any hopes for the future of the Potter book series, which was still ongoing at that time.
“If Quidditch isn’t absolutely necessary, maybe don’t make it so,” he said. “I read in an interview with [the author] a while ago and she said something like that it has become quite a chore writing Quidditch now. It’s quite tough to film. It’s tough on both of us. No one is benefiting! So maybe that would probably be one thing I would say. Then again, it’s also incredibly exciting for people to watch. So there is that as well.”
Look, we get it. Filming those scenes can’t be much fun, what with all of the green screens and the harnesses and the complicated stunts. But we watch the best fantasy movies for escapism, and that vibe certainly comes through during the Quidditch sequences.
It was understandable that Quidditch disappeared from the series during the later movies – sport is probably less important than Horcruxes, we suppose – but we were particularly upset not to get to witness the exquisite drama of the Quidditch World Cup final during Goblet of Fire.
If you want more from this franchise, check out our lists of the best Harry Potter characters and the best Harry Potter villains. You can also find out about Daniel Radcliffe improvised a great Potter moment and look at how Harry Potter is the original nepo baby.
We’ve also got all of the information you need on the new movies and best TV series coming to the Potter world, including the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child release date, the Fantastic Beasts 4 release date, and the Harry Potter TV series release date.