HBO’s Harry Potter reboot has finally revealed a look at a Hogwarts character who was cut from the original movies, and confirmed yet another change from the books. So far, we’ve had confirmation of a number of changes, including characters like Lucius Malfoy turning up in The Philosopher’s Stone (a book early), and even more changes from Chris Columbus’ 2001 adaptation. That much shouldn’t be particularly surprising since HBO has given JK Rowling’s first book 8 episodes to play out, rather than just two-and-a-half hours. That means fewer hard decisions have to be made in the name of economical storytelling.
Arguably the biggest frustration from the first Harry Potter movie was the removal of Peeves the Poltergeist, who played a more significant role in the books than that decision would perhaps suggest. Thankfully, we already know Peeves is involved in HBO’s Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone, but Hogwarts’ most mischievous ghost was conspicuously absent from both the first-look trailer and the newly-revealed footage from the Finding Harry HBO special. Eagle-eyed fans suspected concept art was shown in the background of that special, but now that art has apparently appeared online (thanks to Instagram account Magicallybrothers) in high definition, revealing the first proper look at Peeves the Poltergeist.
Peeves’ Return Fixes Chris Columbus’ Biggest Regret
Director Chris Columbus admitted that the decision to cut Peeves – who would have been played by legendary British comedian Rik Mayall – was his biggest regret from The Philosopher’s Stone. You can, however, understand the decision: Peeves wasn’t crucial enough to the plot to justify the complex logistics, and on paper, he probably looked like an easy runtime cut. HBO’s adaptation obviously doesn’t have that same issue.
Interestingly, the concept art reveals a more colorful take on Peeves than the movies would have gone for. Years after the release, concept art was revealed that painted Mayall’s poltergeist more like an Addams Family character (below), than the colorful harlequin figure described in the books. HBO’s take – if this concept art ends up being final, of course – also ignores the book’s description. The Goblet of Fire reveals that Peeves is a small man who wears a bell-covered hat and sports an orange bow-tie. Both are conspicuously absent from the new concept art, confirming another deviation from the source material.
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