Warner Bros. is only months away from releasing its upcoming Harry Potter remake series on HBO. The series is expected to be a more faithful adaptation than the incredibly popular films of the early 2000s, with a brand new cast. The series has already wrapped production on season 1 and will begin filming season 2 in the coming weeks. However, this wasn’t the first Harry Potter live-action TV series the studio planned to develop.
We at Knight Edge Media learned that, at the height of the streaming wars in the early 2020s, WB planned to develop a Marauders TV series for HBO Max. This would be one of multiple shows in development, as The Hollywood Reporter reported in 2021. The Marauders were a secret group of trouble-making wizards, consisting of Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius Black, and James Potter. They went on to fight the prime Dark Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters at the height of his power throughout the 1970s during the First Wizarding War. Eventually, they became members of the secret society, the Order of the Phoenix, under Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. Fun fact: This group created the Marauder’s Map, which the Weasley twins used decades later (below).
According to our source, the series’ first season already had a full writers’ room assembled and a series bible created. Three full episodes were written, and without notice, CEO David Zaslav pulled the plug in favor of a total reboot. Many of the writers were prepping to begin pre-production and casting when they found out the series was scrapped. Many of the writers learned the show was canceled simply from an announcement that a remake was in development in 2023. It’s still possible HBO’s Harry Potter remake could feature more flashbacks to the Marauders, given its expanded runtime each season. Though that is pure speculation.
The Marauders has no set release date