Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’s ending delivers a turning point to the Harry Potter franchise, giving way to much darker themes as the beloved characters come of age and confront deadlier enemies and creatures. Different from the previous movies, the fourth film ends on a sad note and marks the return of Lord Voldemort, something both fans and Harry Potter knew could happen at any time, yet surprised everyone by the harrowing circumstances it involved. Voldemort’s return reshapes the franchise entirely and sets up the uncanny bond between Harry and him, something that proves to be as helpful as deadly.
Harry and his friends are in a totally different spot in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, turning 14 and beginning to fall in love, fight, and mature as wizards. In the face of an exciting Wizard Tournament hosted by Hogwarts, a new menace seems to lurk on the school ground when Harry is swept up in the competition, rightfully suggesting Voldemort and his Death Eaters are planning something wicked. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire ending is the pivotal moment in which fans begin to see clearly what side characters are, introducing new allies and presenting the most dangerous antagonists.
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire Ending: What Happens & Why
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire’s ending takes nearly an hour to reach its conclusion. Trouble begins with the third and final deadly task of the Triwizard Tournament, in which Harry, Cedric, Krum, and Fleur are pushed into a chilling labyrinth filled with puzzles and dangerous creatures, harboring a much scarier secret in its core. When Harry and Cedric simultaneously reach the Triwizard Cup, they’re bewildered by realizing the Cup is in fact a Portkey that transports them to the Little Hangleton graveyard, where Peter Pettigrew eagerly waits for Harry to pull off the final stage of Voldemort’s return, immediately killing Cedric by Voldemort’s order.
Harry narrowly escapes Voldemort’s killing curse after witnessing Voldemort regain his strength and summon his Death Eaters, and reaches for the Triwizard Cup, transporting him back to Hogwarts with Cedric’s corpse and shocking the audience who enthusiastically waited for their return. Conspiracies begin to unfold when Harry is brought to Moody’s office, where he discovers Moody is in fact Barty Crouch Jr. and manipulated the Triwizard Tournament so Harry could reach the Cup. Moody is intercepted by Dumbledore, Snape, and Minerva before he’s able to kill Harry, rescuing the real Moody and unmasking Crouch Jr., granting him a Dementor’s kiss.
Voldemort’s Return Explained
Voldemort’s return is orchestrated by the Dark Lord himself and vital allies such as Barty Crouch Jr., Nagini, and Peter Pettigrew. While Crouch Jr. plays the pieces to ensure Harry’s success in the Triwizard Tournament, Pettigrew carefully prepares the ingredients of the Resurrection Potion, harvesting ancient dark magic. The potion requires wicked elements such as “bone for the father unknowingly given,” which Pettigrew takes from Tom Riddle Senior’s, Voldemort name grave, “flesh of the servant, willingly given,” offered Pettigrew himself after he cuts off his own hand, and most importantly, “blood of the enemy, forcibly taken,” which Pettigrew extracts from a deep cut in Harry’s arm.
How Harry Survives Voldemort’s Killing Curse
After getting his strength back in a new powerful body, Voldemort is eager to finally exact his revenge and kill Harry Potter, arranging a duel in which Harry, in theory, didn’t stand a chance. Voldemort launches the killing curse upon the young wizard as Harry refuses to use Avada Kedavra, fighting back with Expelliarmus, which knocks whatever the recipient is holding out from his hands. Fans have the first glimpse of the Priori Incantatem phenomenon, something that occurs when two wand cores from the same animal are simultaneously triggered against each other. Harry and Voldemort’s first face-off also foreshadows important moments from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
The fact that Voldemort used Harry’s blood is crucial to Harry’s survival in the final film, reshaping Lily Potter’s Sacrificial Protection when he used Harry’s blood to form his new body. Additionally, Priori Incantatem enables Voldemort’s recent victims to reappear since it reverses the most recent spells done by the wand and they help Harry escape. Before the Dark Lord spell could reach Harry, the ghosts of Voldemort’s past victims, including Cedric and Harry’s parents, appear to aid Harry through their everlasting love and resistance. Knowing Harry isn’t mature enough to face Voldemort yet, they advise the wizard to reach for the Cup and escape while they distract Voldemort in the graveyard.
How Barty Crouch Jr. Manipulates The Triwizard Tournament
The first step to understanding Barty Crouch Jr.’s actions is acknowledging how he managed to pull off his plan under the strict supervision of some of the most competent wizards in the world, including Dumbledore and Snape. Crouch Jr.’s escape from Azkaban is orchestrated by his father Bartemius Crouch Sr. complying to his wife’s request, who took her son’s place and died shortly after in Azkaban, causing everyone to think the evil wizard was dead, and Voldemort, upon learning the truth, thought he was perfect for the job, assigning him to beat an aging and unsuspecting Alastor Moody and impersonate him with the use of Polyjuice Potion.
The fact that Crouch Jr. drinks the Polyjuice from his flask multiple times and doesn’t raise suspicions can be explained by Moody’s well-known tendency to only drink from his own flask. Disguised as Professor Moody, Crouch Jr. was one step ahead of every event that took place in the Triwizard Tournament, including the sorting of the tournament’s participants. Following direct orders from Voldemort, Barty Crouch Jr. ensures Harry will reach the Cup to be used to bring Voldemort back and in the end. The only thing that deviates from Crouch Jr.’s original plan is Cedric reaching the Cup alongside Harry, although Barty certainly doesn’t care for the boy’s death.
Barty Crouch Jr. suggests Hagrid take Harry to the forest and check out the dragons, tells Cedric about how the second task’s clue worked, gives Neville the book that would prompt him to give Harry the gillyweed, and finally, corrupts Krum with the Imperius curse to ensure Harry would succeed in the tournament’s final task, culminating in a successful chain of events that guaranteed Harry’s victory. Crouch Jr. also puts Harry’s name in the Goblet of Fire by using the powerful Confundus Charm, tricking the goblet into accepting Harry’s name as a member of another unspecified school. However, that’s far from being his sole contribution to the Triwizard Tournament’s system.
How Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire Ending Sets Up The Franchise’s Future
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire sets up the beginning of the end for the franchise, offering a turning point to the sequels that will explore a much darker approach. Foremost, the ending introduces many characters that will have greater importance in the future such as the real Alastor Moody, one of the world’s greatest Aurors, the Death Eaters, Voldemort’s faithful worshipers, Nagini, which turns out to be Voldemort’s final horcrux and of course, Voldemort himself, the Dark Lord with his strength and power restored, now ready to declare war against all good-natured wizards and seek revenge against Harry Potter.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire ending also establishes Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix‘s greatest conflict, which is Harry Potter’s prophecy and the clash between Harry’s allies and the government as they try to speak up about the truth about Voldemort’s return. Fearing general hysteria, the Ministry of Magic refuses to disclose the truth about the Triwizard Tournament’s events even after Cedric’s shocking death and the unmasking of Barty Crouch Jr.’s conspiracy. This conflict of interest will put the lives of many beloved characters in danger, such as Arthur Weasley and Sirius Black, leading up to a memorable battle between good and evil.
