Several plotholes from the original Harry Potter books and movies have been called out over the years, but HBO’s upcoming TV remake can finally set things right. As beloved as stories from the Wizarding World franchise have become, they are far from perfect. Like any fictional world, audiences have noticed some problems within the plot and worldbuilding, and things only got more complicated as the series went on. However, a significant benefit of remaking Harry Potter as a TV series is a chance to fill these plotholes.
Warner Bros and HBO will be remaking the Harry Potter movies in a TV format, dedicating entire seasons to each of J.K. Rowling’s books. As well as finally bringing some of the best book moments to the screen, this also means that some of the biggest plotholes plaguing fans’ minds for years can finally be fixed. In most cases, doing so will only require some subtle additions of information, though some Harry Potter plotholes will require some creativity on the part of the TV remake to finally make sense (as much as a magical world can, that is).
The Potterverse: All The Wizarding World Films In Chronological Order
All the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts films from WB and J K Rowling – from the Fantastic Beasts of the 20s to the Deathly Hallows.
10 Harry’s Scar Should Have Hurt When He Met Professor Quirrell
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone
The first time Harry’s scar hurt in the Harry Potter series was in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone when he saw Severus Snape. Of course, this was a red herring, and the painful reaction resulted from being so near to Lord Voldemort, who was planted on the back of Professor Quirrell’s head. This is frustrating since Hogwarts wasn’t the first time Harry saw Quirrell—they had met at the Leaky Cauldron. The simple fix for this plothole would be to remove this meeting altogether and have the first time Harry sees Quirrell be at school.
9 Muggle-Borns Shouldn’t Be Afraid Of Voldemort’s Name
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone
It makes sense that Muggle-borns would try to assimilate with wizarding culture as quickly as possible, but the fact that they immediately fear Voldemort’s name has always been strange. Harry certainly never feared the word, but others who grew up in the Muggle world, like Hermione, cringed when they heard “Voldemort” after only a couple of months among magical folk. Since they never experienced—or had loved ones who experienced—the First Wizarding War, it would make more sense if this was a factor that differentiated Muggle and magical-born Hogwarts students in the remake.
8 Alohamora Is A Redundant Spell In Harry Potter
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone
The first time we see the spell “Alohamora” in Harry Potter is when Hermione uses it to unlock the door leading to Fluffy and the trap door. She mentioned that she had found the spell in The Standard Book of Spells, which implies that it is one of the more basic spells of the wizarding world. The problem is that this makes both the spell and locks entirely redundant. In the Harry Potter remake, there should be some learning curve for Alohamora so that not just any witch or wizard who knows the incantation can open virtually any lock.
7 The Teachers Would Have Asked Moaning Myrtle How She Died
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets
In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were, for some reason, the only people in 50 years who considered asking Moaning Myrtle the details of her murder. Surely, if one of the professors like McGonagall, Snape, or Dumbledore had, they would have figured out the location of the Chamber of Secrets and the monster within just like the group of 12-year-olds did. Of course, since they weren’t Paselmouths, they couldn’t have accessed the Chamber anyway. Therefore, the Harry Potter remake should reveal that they knew but were powerless.
6 Hagrid’s Wand Shouldn’t Have Worked After It Was Broken
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone
It’s revealed in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone that Hagrid’s wand was broken when he was expelled, but that he put the pieces within an umbrella so he could continue to use them. However, in Chamber of Secrets, and throughout the rest of the Harry Potter series, it’s made clear that broken wands are unusable. Hagrid’s wand would only work if Dumbledore fixed it with his own wand—the Elder Wand. However, since neither the books nor movies ever confirmed this, we can’t know for sure unless the Harry Potter remake makes it canon.
5 Veritaserum Should Have Been Used In Sirius Black’s Trial
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Prisoner Of Azkaban
Veritaserum was introduced in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, but it certainly would have been helpful before this. After all, Sirius Black was sent to prison without a trial for a crime he knew he was innocent of. Rowling has since revealed that, like Muggle lie detectors, Veritaserum isn’t foolproof. However, like Muggle lie detectors, it seems the potion could have been used in at least some legal circumstances. It would make far more sense in the Harry Potter remake if it were revealed that someone, perhaps a Death Eater within the Ministry, pushed Sirius’ case forward without it.
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4 Barty Crouch Jr’s Plan In Goblet Of Fire Was Needlessly Complicated
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Goblet Of Fire
Another problem in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the overcomplicated nature of Voldemort and Barty Crouch Jr.’s plan. Rather than turning the Triwizard Cup into a Portkey, it would have been far easier if Crouch/Moody had done this with any arbitrary object. He only would have needed to earn Harry’s trust and ask him to hand over a quill or notebook. An easy fix for this would be the Harry Potter remake revealing that Portkeys can only be made by the Ministry and that the Triwizard Cup was meant to transport the winner to the start of the maze. That way, tampering with the cup would have been Moody’s only option.
3 Voldemort Should Have Just Gotten The Prophecy From The Department Of Mysteries
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Order Of The Phoenix
Voldemort’s primary goal in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was to get ahold of Professor Trelawney’s Chosen One prophecy. Since it was also about him, the Dark Lord could have gotten it from the Department of Mysteries himself, but he didn’t want to risk revealing that he had returned. Still, the plan to get Harry to claim it was far riskier and overly complicated, especially since getting the Boy Who Lived involved was a guaranteed way to make all hell break lose. The Harry Potter TV reboot should retcon this by establishing that Voldemort couldn’t claim the prophecy himself—not that he preferred not to.
2 Why Would Dumbledore Put On The Resurrection Stone Ring?
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince
In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Dumbledore was fatally cursed when he put on the Peverell Ring, which was secretly the Resurrection Stone of the Deathly Hallows. It’s explained that he foolishly put the ring on because he was too tempted to resurrect his loved ones, but this makes no sense. There was never any indication that the wearing of the ring would make the stone work—in fact, generations of Gaunts had worn it without realizing what it was. Therefore, Dumbledore should be cursed in the Harry Potter remake for simply touching the Horcrux, not wearing it.
1 The Killing Curse Isn’t Used Enough In The Harry Potter Series
Plothole In Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows
War breaks out in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and despite there being a curse that instantly kills an opponent, most good witches and wizards don’t use it. This isn’t to say that the Order of the Phoenix doesn’t kill—Lupin specifically states in Deathly Hallows that Harry should be prepared to kill, and the good side uses several fatal curses. However, for some reason, the Killing Curse is avoided, which puts people at risk. The Harry Potter TV remake can fix this by having good characters use the curse, making Harry’s refusal to do so all the more impactful.
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is HBO’s remake of the iconic Wizarding World film series that consisted of eight films between 2001 and 2011. Each season adapts a book from JK Rowling’s popular series and provides more book-accurate details than the movies did. Upon the announcement of the Harry Potter TV show, the series received harsh criticism for the involvement of Rowling and for many thinking a reboot was unnecessary.
- Seasons
- 1
- Streaming Service(s)
- HBO Max
- Franchise(s)
- Harry Potter
