Daniel Radcliffe On How Alfonso Cuarón Changed the Harry Potter Franchise

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Daniel Radcliffe explains how Alfonso Cuarón’s time as a Harry Potter director changed the franchise’s future. The Harry Potter film series began in 2001, serving as an adaption of J.K Rowling’s hugely successful novels. Spanning over the course of a decade, the series ended in 2011 after its eighth and final film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2. However, the Wizarding World has continued to be explored in the current, albeit more divisive, Fantastic Beasts series.

Following on from Chris Columbus’s direction of the first two Harry Potter films, Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets, Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón was brought in to helm Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The film was a significant departure from the first two entries in the series, replacing their whimsical and fantastical nature with a darker and eerier tone. The film is regarded by many as the best Harry Potter film in the franchise, and marks the introduction of Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew.

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Now, in an interview with Empire, Daniel Radcliffe has expanded on why Cuarón’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was such a turning point for the series. The actor explains why the decision wasn't as straightforward as it seems by today's standards, explaining that Cuarón wasn’t as well known by general audiences as he is now. Radcliffe also stated that Cuarón’s direction «shaped» the franchise's direction over the coming years, allowing the Harry Potter films “to go to a darker place.” Check out Radcliffe's full quote below:

“[The Harry Potter producers] got Alfonso Cuarón to come in and direct the third one. Now, by the standards of modern