The Harry Potter series has captivated millions of fans worldwide. To many, whether they simply loved the movies or know all the books by heart, the magical world of Hogwarts is a second home. The first book came out in 1997, the first movie came out in 2001, and yet, two decades later, Harry Potter’s fans are as dedicated as always. In fact, just like the characters in their beloved series, they grew up, and some taught their children or their younger siblings to love Harry Potter, too!
Websites like Pottermore, which provides fans with in-depth information about the Wizarding world, and with quizzes that will allow you to find out your house, your patronus, your wand, and more, as well as the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida, where Potterheads can pretend they truly live in a magical world, show how important Harry Potter has become in popular culture.
The books and movies inspired countless games, items of merch, and pieces of art. Even though the final movie came out in 2011, these are still being produced and the new Fantastic Beasts movies are giving the series new life as new fans fall in love with Newt Scamander and his crew. The great thing about Harry Potter is that J.K. Rowling created an incredibly rich and complex world. There are always new things to find out about your favorite wizards! For instance, here are 25 things that were deleted from the Harry Potter books and movies that we bet you didn’t know.
25 Arthur Weasley’s End (From The Books)
Remember the nerve-wracking scene in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix where Arthur Weasley faces Voldemort’s snake Nagini? Arthur barely escapes with his life, but, as it turns out, he wasn’t meant to escape at all.
J.K. Rowling had originally planned for Arthur Weasley to meet an untimely end during this scene.
This means that Ron would have not only lost his brother Fred, but also his father! We know that for authors, the temptation to end their characters is high, but we’re glad Rowling refrained this time.
24 S.P.E.W. (From The Movies)
Many fans were outraged to see that Hermione’s S.P.E.W. storyline was cut from the movies. In the books, Hermione is passionate about house elf rights, and it’s an important thing for her character. In fact, in the books, the reason she first kisses Ron is because he shows that he cares about house-elves, too. During the Quidditch World Cup, she sees Winky the house-elf get abused, and, furious, creates the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare. She wears S.P.E.W. badges and enlists her friends in her society. It seems like an odd thing to omit!
23 Fred And George’s Swamp (From The Movies)
When Dolores Umbridge became the Hogwarts High Inquisitor (and later the Headmistress), she installed a reign of terror. Students resisted, of course, and no one gave her more trouble than Fred and George Weasley.
In the books, they created a Portable Swamp and placed it in the corridor outside Umbridge’s office.
Then, they flew off into the sunset on their brooms. It’s an iconic Harry Potter moment, and one that really showcases the twins’ genius. We all wish we could have seen that in the movies!
22 Draco Malfoy’s Last Name (From The Books)
Sometimes, authors go through many names before settling on one to give their characters. The Malfoys were originally meant to be Spungens, then, later, the Spinks. J.K. Rowling eventually settled on Malfoy, a name derived from the French Mal Foi, meaning “bad faith.” The name fits Draco and his family so well, it’s hard to imagine them being called anything else! It also gives them a connection to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, as “Voldemort” comes from the French “vol de mort.” How cool is that?
21 The Longbottoms (From The Movies)
Quite a bit of Neville’s storyline was omitted from the movies, and, to fans who never read the books, he’s mostly remembered for having “longbottomed” (become phenomenally attractive during the course of the series).
There’s quite a bit more to Neville than that, however, starting with his family.
His parents were Aurors, who fought Death Eaters and were rendered insane by Bellatrix Lestrange’s Cruciatus Curse. In the books, they’re hospitalized at St-Mungo’s, and Neville has a heart-wrenching encounter with them. In the movies, we sadly don’t see them at all.
20 Ron Wasn’t Supposed To Survive Either (From The Books)
That’s right: Ron Weasley himself, Harry Potter’s best friend and a fan-favorite wizard among Potterheads, almost met his end during the series. J.K. Rowling admitted she considered that Ron might not make it to the end of the series. As he was meant to lose his life towards the middle of the series, it wouldn’t have been during the Battle of Hogwarts, which leaves the question of how Rowling would have gotten rid of him open. Ron’s had many close calls over the course of the saga, but we’re certainly glad he survived in the end!
19 The Potters And The Grangers Were Friends (From The Books)
Originally, in the books, Hermione’s parents were meant to know the Potters. Would they have known they were wizards? This much we don’t know, but it implies that in the early version of the book, Harry and Hermione would have known each other since they were children, instead of meeting on the Hogwarts Express. Furthermore, Mr. Granger was supposed to be the one to save baby Harry after Voldemort’s attack. This would have brought on quite a bit of plot holes, which would explain why Rowling scrapped the idea!
18 Percy’s Role Should Have Been More Important (From The Movies)
The movies don’t really show us how complex of a character Percy Weasley is. They skim over his time as a Ministry agent, which was an important part of the book, since Percy essentially betrayed his family to work for Cornelius Fudge, who refused to acknowledge Voldemort’s return! Percy, Ron, and the rest of the Weasley siblings have a complicated relationship that isn’t addressed in depth in the movies. This does make sense, however, as Percy is a minor character.
17 Nearly Headless Nick’s Party (From The Movies)
Ghosts as a whole were much less present in the Harry Potter movies, which is a shame as they were all very interesting characters. Well, except maybe for Professor Binns, the ghost professor who was known for his impossibly boring classes (“his lessons are widely thought to be the dullest at the school”, according to Pottermore but Binns never even made it into the movies. Another thing that was cut from the movies was Nearly Headless Nick’s Deathday Party, which really is a shame.
16 Theodor Nott Should Have Had More Of A Role (From The Books)
Remember Theodor Nott? You’d have to have an amazing memory, as he’s barely mentioned in the books. He’s a Slytherin student in Harry and Draco’s year, and that’s about all we know. But apparently, he was meant to have more of a role in the books J.K. Rowling considered making him a bully who would rival Malfoy—but that never happened, and Draco’s reign as lead Slytherin bully remains unquestioned. It’s a relief, as Slytherins already have a poor reputation!
15 More Quidditch, Please! (From The Movies)
Of course, Quidditch, a magical sport involving brooms, flying balls, and the magical Golden Snitch, was a part of the movies. However, many fans would have liked to see their favorite sport featured more prominently in the films. Quidditch is a huge part of the books, and it became immensely popular among fans. Real-life schools even have their own Quidditch teams, and host tournaments! In conclusion, as far as Potterheads are concerned, more Quidditch can never be a bad thing.
14 “I Don’t Think You’re A Waste Of Space”: Dudley’s Redemption (From The Movies)
Dudley Dursley was one of the many unsavory characters Harry had to face. He bullied young Harry mercilessly and quickly became one of the characters fans despised the most. After all, Dursley’s treatment of Harry is utterly terrible, and the fact that he’s backed up by his equally despicable parents didn’t help. In the books, he did have a sort of redemption moment where he admitted he didn’t think Harry was “a waste of space.” which was sadly cut from the movies.
13 Hermione’s Sister (From The Books)
According to the Harry Potter Wiki, Hermione was meant to have a younger sister. The Wiki lists her as a Muggle, which would have been an interesting thing to see!
Even though Rowling eventually decided not to put Hermione’s sister in the books, we can’t help but wonder what that would have been like.
Would Hermione have had to Obliviate her own sister, like she did for her parents to protect them from Voldemort? This would have made an already sad moment even more heart-wrenching.
12 We Miss Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, And Prongs (From The Movies)
The Marauders, Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs, were barely present in the movies. For many fans who grew attached to the gang of wizardly troublemakers, that’s a shame. They’re a big part of the Harry Potter universe, as they created the Marauder’s Map. Not to mention, fans loved to read about Harry’s parents (James Potter was a Marauder) and about previous generations of Hogwarts students! Many were disappointed to see a large part of their story was cut out of the movie.
11 Squibs? Never Heard Of Them (From The Movies)
In the books, Argus Filch, the somewhat-creepy, and definitely unpleasant Hogwarts Caretaker is a squib—a wizard born with little to no magical abilities. This explains his hostile attitude towards students (and sometimes teachers) as he resents wizards who do have the ability to use magic. This was cut from the movies—in fact, the whole concept of squibs is never mentioned. It’s too bad because the idea of squibs gives more depth to the character of Argus Filch and to the wizarding world.
10 The Weasley’s Sinister Cousin (From The Books)
The Weasleys are a family of strong, brave, caring people. They were all sorted into Gryffindor, from Bill, who now works as a curse breaker for Gringotts, and Charlie, who studies dragons in Romania, to Ron and young Ginny.
But what would happen if a Weasley were to be sorted in, say, Slytherin?
Rowling apparently asked herself this question as she considered giving the Weasleys a dastardly Slytherin cousin, a girl named Mafalda. She was eventually pulled from the books, and Rowling referred to her as the “phantom character of Harry Potter” (in an interview for EW).
9 Vampires At Hogwarts? (From The Books)
No, we don’t mean Snape—even though many fans have theorized that the infamous Potions professor might be a vampire. There almost was a real vampire professor at Hogwarts, however.
Rowling came up with a character called Professor Trocar, who also happened to be a vampire.
And after all, why not? Vampires exist in the Harry Potter universe (Harry Potter even meets one during the Slug Club party). Rowling eventually decided to cut him, however, and vampires were never a big part of the series.
8 Molly Weasley’s Boggart (From The Movies)
According to Pottermore, “a boggart is a shape-shifting creature that will assume the form of whatever most frightens the person who encounters it.” Students are taught to defend themselves against boggarts during Defense Against the Dark Arts classes, using the Riddikulus spell. A boggart can tell us a lot about a person.
For instance, Molly Weasley’s boggart takes the form of her children’s lifeless bodies—including Harry Potter.
It shows that is incredibly caring and considers Harry one of her own, but, sadly, this detail didn’t make it into the movie.
7 Nearly Headless Nick’s Song (From The Books)
In an early draft of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Rowling had included the “Ballad of Nearly Headless Nick” (Harry Potter Wiki), a long song that describes the events surrounding the famous ghost’s end. It tells us about how Sir Nicholas met Lady Grieve, tried to fix her crooked teeth, and accidentally gave her a tusk. Though he protested he could “put her right,” he was sentenced to execution. It’s understandable why this didn’t make it into the final draft, as the song is, as I mentioned, long, and the book already was quite lengthy.
6 There’s A Lot More To Say About Voldemort (From The Movies)
In the movies, Voldemort is portrayed as a loud, chaotic, and potentially insane villain. Of course, Ralph Fiennes’ portrayal is nothing short of iconic, but we can’t help but wonder what he would have been like had the movies included more of Voldemort’s story. There are quite a few things that people don’t know about Voldemort, or that people get wrong about him. That’s mostly because quite a bit of his story, like the way he ended his parents, is omitted from the movies. There was, however, a fan-made origin movie about Voldemort!
