SINGAPORE: “Yer a wizard, Harry.”
No more iconic words of initiation have been spoken. They introduced readers to a vast world of magic, seen through the eyes of a then 11-year-old boy.
Those words were also the launch pad of seven novels, eight films, a play, and numerous spin-offs, video games and theme parks.
As the first Harry Potter film turns 20 this year, millennials will fondly reminisce about our journey through the years with The Boy Who Lived.
Whenever a new book arrived, we burrowed into it, excitedly discussed its events, and speculated what will happen next. The film adaptations sated our appetites while we waited.
Once a new book was announced, we badgered our parents to pre-order it. On the day it hit shelves, we waited in line with bated breaths.
Looking back at the analogue way we did all this, it’s interesting to think: If JK Rowling wrote and published the novels today, would they have had the same success as they did two decades ago? What about the films?
COMPELLING STORY, CHARACTERS AND SETTING
Harry Potter remains an incredibly lucrative multimedia franchise. It has raked in US$25 billion through book sales, box office earnings and more, beating out other fantasy series like The Lord Of The Rings or A Song Of Ice And Fire (including TV series Game Of Thrones).
Not many contemporary novels – let alone one targeted at children and young adults – have become a worldwide phenomenon like Harry Potter.