On June 26, 1997 when the first Harry Potter novel was published after being rejected by a dozen publishing houses, no one was expecting it to do well. J.K. Rowling's editor even told her to get a day job since he didn't expect her to make any money writing children's book. However, 20 years later, the seven Harry Potter novels in total have sold over half a billion copies, the nine films (including the Fantastic Beasts spin-off prequel) have made over $8.5 billion in ticket sales and $7 billion in merchandising. All in all, it totals to over $25 billion dollars for the franchise.
However, for the regular folks who have nothing to do with the financial aspect, the franchise has left a lasting impression.
I first came upon Harry Potter at 10 years old when my brother brought the DVDs for the first two films for me. At the time I wasn't using the internet and hadn't really heard about the franchise since I lived in a small city. I watched the films and liked them. I looked up Harry Potter on the net and found out that it was adapted from a book series and asked my father who owned a book store to get them for me. At age 10, I hadn't really read any novels so after a long time I finished the four books out at that time. I loved the books. However that slowly turned into obsession when I find out I had to wait for more books and movies. I re-read the books, re-watched the first two films. And scoured the internet for any news and bits of the upcoming fifth novel. As the year passed and more books came, my love for the series grew further. I still remember discussing it with my friends, anxiously waiting for the movies (which I all watched on DVD expect the last one because the cinema
Below the SpoilerTV team shares the own thought and experiences with the franchise,
Laura Mastantuono: I was 11 when my dad gave me a copy as a gift, l got lost in that world, fantasizing that maybe a letter could arrive (l'm still waiting for it, damn owls) HP wasn't just a franchise or books or movies to me, it was a world where outsiders meet others like them, where you could dream and magic happened and where right and wrong wasn't always black and white. My teenage years will always relate to it and it's amazing to see how it goes from generation to generation.
Donna Cromeans: To be honest I've never read any of the books but have enjoyed the movies. What I can say is blessings to JK Rowling for creating a phenomenon that made kids want to read! I was working in a book store when the books first came out and remember seeing all the kids bringing their parents in to buy the book. And it was gratifying as well to see parents and kids interested in reading them together.
Jamie Coudeville: The Harry Potter books are the first books I ever read as a child and 15 years later they were the books that got me back into reading. It's really hard to put into words what they mean to me but despite having read nearly 500 books in my life, none have ever made me feel the same way as the Harry Potter series. Each time I reread it (like I'm doing right now with book 4), it feels like coming home.
Samantha Benjamin: I was first introduced to Harry Potter in Primary School when one of our teachers read Philosopher's Stone to us during afternoon reading hour. I loved it so much my mum bought me the book because I couldn't wait a week to find out how it ended, and they ended up becoming a regular present. I still re-read the books every now & then and repurchased some that had become extremely old, and I still love them. They're not perfect by any means, but there's just something special about the first series you get into.
Louis Rabinowitz: The strange thing about Harry Potter is that it spans two generations. I wasn't born when the first book came in, and was barely old enough to understand them even as the later ones came in, but for someone who couldn't grasp the extent of JK Rowling's world, both the books and the movies (they're just as good as each other!) still became inextricably bound up entirely with my childhood as the first proper experience of being swept into a fictional world that seemed richer, and seemed to make more sense, than the real one. I still remember speed-reading The Deathly Hallows and then breathlessly racing to tell my brother, who was taking his time, that Voldemort died at the end, which was probably not the nicest thing for my eight year old self to do. There genuinely hasn't been a time in my life when Harry Potter wasn't around somehow. It's always been there, and I hope it always will be.
Luana Arturi: The moment I turned 11 I was expecting that letter, and even after that, I kept hoping it had just gotten lost somehow. The dementors were the first thing that ever scared me and the death of Sirius was the first one to ever make me cry. The world of Harry Potter is magical for many more reasons other than the obvious ones, it's a world that makes me feel this ache of nostalgia beyond anything I ever thought could be felt for a work of fiction. This is a world that has clearly marked so many of us permanently, there is a whole generation that sometimes can find common ground in their love for this world alone, and that is the real magic of it. I don't think there is any other fictional world capable of meaning this much to so many, or characters more purely beloved.
Nirat Anop: Harry Potter means the world to me. I remember when I saw an ad for the first movie, my parents and I were at a mall, it was during the holiday season. Watching Harry with his wand, I remember being immediately drawn to his world, feeling that sense of wonder and magic I had always dreamed of becoming somewhat a reality. I hadn’t read the 1st book as it was published when I was very young (I wasn’t even 5 years old) but that first movie, it really made younger kids turn to reading (though, I was always reading). I remember what an occasion it was as each new installment of the series was released, so many kids in my class would be queuing in line to buy the book and then bring it into class, discuss etc, it was such a phenomenon. I cannot thank J.K. Rowling enough for breathing life into such iconic characters that shaped so many childhoods, thank you for all of the dreams and escapes you gave us. It was literally embedded into my childhood. With the movies, we had yet another piece of this world, in cinematic form, to obsess and watch over, seeing Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint plus the incredible cast slip into these beloved roles, and as children, grow with me and many other children as they dealt with loss, love and villainy (amongst many other things) was one of the most amazing things. When the time had come for the series to close, I remember how heartbreaking it was, these characters, Harry, Ron, and Hermione and so much more had such sentimental value to me, that it was like losing family (even my parents loved the series). We had these wizards be a part of us from the cupboard under the stairs until the last sendoff at Platform 9 3/4. I cannot believe 20 years have passed. I will never forget this world, it is and will always be a part of my life.
Justyna Kubica: Reading Harry Potter books is one of the fondest memories of my time growing up. It started with a simple story told by my sister and it didn't take long until I asked her to borrow me the first book. I loved it from the very start and caught up with the other two already published almost right away. From book four and onwards we were waiting anxiously till the premiere and did our best to be there before time, going through the snow to the closest bookstore. It was more than the book, it was an experience, one shared with my family and I loved every second of it. These books still remain to this day my favorite story, my all-time favorite book series. The movies were such a lovely addition to this journey with Harry Potter. I celebrated my birthday with some of these movies, awaited every trailer, every premiere. Every year I take one of the books with me on my vacations, quite a tradition at this point. And though the years go by, Harry Potter still means the world to me. So thank you to the wonderful J.K. Rowling and every single person who brought these stories to me. There's a famous quote the author shared with the fans when the last movie was showed in the cinemas and it's one of my favorites as well. Beautiful and so true every time I need it. 'Whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.'
The internet was exploding, games consoles were getting bigger but one woman told her children stories. She wrote them down and later after a publisher’s assistant insisted her boss read it changed the world.
20 years on most can remember their first Potter experience. Mine was a friend returning from a Honeymoon in Oregon reading to us one evening over a lot of wine he read the first chapter. Though I enjoyed it I didn’t return to the books until the fourth book and a conversation with my aunt about them that I started my Harry Potter Journey. Looking back, I realise the appeal these books had my aunt at the time was in her late 50’s and I was in my late 20’s but for years we would have lengthy discussions about them. I would like everyone else eagerly await the next book, it was always preordered and queued for at midnight which became somewhat of a tradition for a group of friends and me. Of course, the films were watched as soon as released and usual comparisons made.
Since then I visited the studios, a treat in my 40th year. had my picture taken at platform 9 ¾. I know I am a Gryffindor and my Patronus is a wolf (all can be done on the Potterm
The books fuel the imagination with a world of magic and wonder but there are also subtle messages woven into the pages and life lessons. Good versus evil is the ultimate battle with Harry and friends at the front.
Jessica Lerner: The Harry Potter franchise is a huge part of my childhood. Before I was a TV addict, I was obsessed with Harry Potter. I would reread the books, write fanfiction and spent many years falling asleep to the series on tape. I lost myself in the fantasy world J.K. Rowling created, wanting so desperately for magic to be real and go to Hogwarts myself. I grew up with these books as the final volume came out when I was in middle school, which was a rough time. I was able to find comfort and solace in the Boy Who Lived, immerse myself in a world where anything was possible. I remember attending midnight releases with my friends and family, dressing up as our favorite characters, just so excited to see what happened next. When the book series ended, we still had the movies. When the movies finished, we got a theme park. We got a spinoff movie franchise and a stage play. We got a website devoted specifically to Harry Potter. We continue to learn more about the wizarding world every day. When J.K. Rowling penned the line, “every child in our world will know his name,” in the first chapter of the first book, she could not have imagined how true those words would ring. Harry Potter continues to live on in the world around us, but also in our hearts, minds, and memories. This series has given me so much joy, love, and hope over the years, and I hope it does the same for generations to come.
Share your own experiences and thoughts about the Harry Potter franchise or any thing else Harry Potter related in the comment below.
