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Credit: Warner Bros.It’s no mystery to Potterheads that author J.K. Rowling regrets pairing Hermione Granger with Ronald Weasley in the Harry Potter books and films. But now that she’s one of the executive producers on the upcoming HBO series, she may finally decide to set things right.
J.K. Rowling isn’t one to keep her thoughts to herself. When she’s not stirring the cauldron on X (Twitter), she’s letting fans know what Harry, Ron, and Hermione are up to these days, or spilling the beans about her regrets on how certain things panned out in Harry Potter.
In an interview conducted by Hermione Granger actress Emma Watson for the entertainment magazine Wonderland way back in 2014 (via Variety), Rowling shocked fans when she admitted that she didn’t really want Hermione and Ron to end up together.
She said, “I wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment. That’s how it was conceived, really, for reasons that have very little to do with literature and far more to do with me clinging to the plot as I first imagined it, Hermione ended up with Ron.”
She went on to apologize to fans, saying, “I know, I’m sorry, I can hear the rage and fury it might cause some fans, but if I’m absolutely honest, distance has given me perspective on that. It was a choice I made for very personal reasons, not for reasons of credibility. Am I breaking people’s hearts by saying this? I hope not.”
She added, “I think there are fans out there who know that, too, and who wonder whether Ron would have really been able to make her happy.”
But now, Rowling may finally be able to set things right.
In 2023, the Wizarding World community was rocked to its core when Warner Bros. announced that Harry Potter was being rebooted in the form of a television series for HBO, with each of its seven seasons dedicated to one of the books by Rowling.
Related: HBO’s ‘Harry Potter’ Could Finally Embrace Dumbledore’s Sexuality
Set to premiere sometime in 2026, the show will be a “faithful adaptation” of the seven Harry Potter books — news that has already delighted many fans, particularly those disappointed with the films for failing to adapt several subplots and character arcs.
But, despite this pledge, some changes could still be made, especially with Rowling serving as an executive producer on the show. While the world-famous author seemingly has very little say over casting, she’ll undoubtedly have a huge influence over the story.
Related: Weasleys May Be Portrayed by Actors of Color in ‘Harry Potter’ Reboot
After all, the seven books the series is adapted from are hers. While the “faithful adaptation” strategy will likely continue all the way through the marketing when the series is eventually conjured up (production starts this summer), it will likely undergo significant changes, too.
Some of those alterations will be from a diversity standpoint — the recent casting of Paapa Essiedu (Black Mirror) as Severus Snape is proof of this alone. As such, it’s likely that many other characters will be portrayed by actors of color, perhaps even Harry Potter himself.
But why would the changes stop there?
Related: Will Ralph Fiennes’ Brother Play Voldemort in HBO’s ‘Harry Potter’ Reboot?!
While the series will probably reinstate most of the content omitted from the eight films, we may see other aspects of the story go off in a completely different direction, including the relationship between Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.
Throughout the Harry Potter series, Hermione and Ron grow increasingly affectionate towards each other. But it isn’t until after they’ve destroyed one of the Horcruxes in the Chamber of Secrets during the third act of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (or Part 2 if we’re talking about the films) that they officially become an item.
But by this point, it all feels a little shoehorned and out of place.
In the Deathly Hallows epilogue, which takes place 19 years later, Hermione and Ron are shown to be married with children, which is developed in the 2016 West End play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. But Rowling could easily undo it all with the closest thing she has to a Time-Turner: the upcoming Harry Potter television series.
Many Potterheads feel that Hermione should have ended up with Harry. While the pair have a strictly platonic relationship in the books and films, given their obvious chemistry, many fans think they would have made a far better couple.
So, we wouldn’t be surprised if the reboot takes a significant detour and pairs the Boy Who Lived up with Hogwart’s brightest witch.
The Harry Potter TV series stars Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, John Lithgow (Dexter, The Crown) as Albus Dumbledore, Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) as Rubeus Hagrid, Janet McTeer (Tumbleweeds, The White Queen) as Minerva McGonagall, Luke Thallon (Tom Stoppard’s Leopoldstadt, Rupert Goold’s Patriots) as Quirinus Quirrell, and Paul Whitehouse (The Fast Show, Harry & Paul) as Argus Filch.
The series is written and executive-produced by showrunner Francesca Gardiner (HBO’s Succession, His Dark Materials, Killing Eve). It’s also executive-produced by J.K. Rowling, Neil Blair, and Ruth Kenley-Letts of Brontë Film and TV, and David Heyman of Heyday Films. Mark Mylod (Succession, Game of Thrones, The Last of Us), also an executive producer, will direct multiple episodes.
Click here to find out everything there is to know about the new series.
Would you like to see Harry and Hermione end up together in the Harry Potter reboot? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!