During the Children of Men press junket this weekend I had a chance to sit down with director Alfonso Cuarón and talk a little Harry Potter. His name always comes up when people talk Harry Potter, even J.K. Rowling herself proclaims Prisoner of Azkaban to be her favorite film so far in the continuing series and her love for Cuarón’s work doesn’t stop there as you will soon read.
David Yates is currently directing the fifth installment in the Harry Potter franchise, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, but there are still two films to go and when asked about whether he would like to be involved Alfonso is not shy in letting his feelings known, “I would love to have the opportunity to revist the Harry Potter universe,” he said. “It’s an amazing experience to do those films because while you are doing those films you are surrounded by this amazingly beneficial energy. Everything that is surrounding J.K. Rowling’s creation, and I’m not talking about the film franchise, but J.K. Rowling’s creation is so impregnated with this amazing beneficial energy. For me it was two amazing years of my life and I wouldn’t mind at all revisiting that.”
When asked if he has continued his reading of the books he jokes saying he has read all 12 books, but on a serious note I asked him if he would have any fear of directing what could possibly be the seventh and final film in the franchise and having the responsibility of ending the film series and being under the microscope of millions of fans. “No, I cannot make a decision on a movie that I am going to do from the standpoint of what is going to be good or bad from the standpoint of my career,” Cuarón said. “I cannot act based on fear. Because then I make the wrong choices. I have to make my decisions based on my stomach and what my heart is dictating. Now once I make the decision I become terrified. Once you make the decision there is no way back and from then on you live terrified.”
Terrified or not Cuarón would certainly love to return to the franchise, you can see it in his eyes and his smile when the topic is brought up, and it is obvious he holds J.K. Rowling in very high esteem as she recently gave him a well deserved congratulations for Children of Men as he happened to be in director David Yates’ office one day when Yates just was coincidentally on the phone with J.K. Cuarón talked about the moment saying, “I was in his office and since they are doing the Harry Potter movie right now David was talking to Jo and said, ‘Hey, Jo wants to talk to you,’ and she just wanted to tell me that she really liked Children of Men and you know, it is just one of those opinions that really counts. She is a woman that I deeply admire.”
Finally, when asked if he has been approached or has expressed official interest in returning to the franchise he smiled and said, “I am very good friends with David Hayman, the producer, and I think that they know and I think everybody is waiting to see what J.K. Rowling does.”
As are we all.
Stay tuned for the rest of RopeofSilicon’s Children of Men press coverage and for more on the latest Harry Potter including 11 new pictures and a 10 second sneak peek at Monday’s teaser trailer click here.
