10 Foolproof Steps For A Perfect Harry Potter Remake

The big problem with adapting Harry Potter in any rigid structure is that the books change so much across their seven volumes, both in tone and, more crucial on a practical level, length. The early films were really faithful adaptations, but as they went on the plots became so overwhelming and labyrinthine they had to be massively parsed down to fit a somewhat respectable running time. The result was a basic story that lacked real depth, something that became so ingrained wasn't even corrected for The Deathly Hallows despite its two-part extension.

But that needn't be a problem on TV. Shows can range from one-off specials to twenty-two episode behemoths, and in the modern age things are a lot more variable - six, eight, ten, thirteen episodes it seems to be very up in the air - so why not vary across the series? The Philosopher's Stone could be six or eight episodes (depending how much basic world-building you want), then later ones can balloon to thirteen. There'll still be some things cut or adjusted, but the expansion would be so much more effective.

It's not like this is totally unprecedented. Netflix has already started varying episode length - without the confines or scheduling or adverts, showrunners have a lot more freedom, able to produce episodes within the same season ranging from 45 to 65 minutes - and adjusting actual episode numbers is no big difference.