Movie News & Updates The Knight Bus!! COUNTDOWNS: Approximately days until Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban hits theaters! Do you wanna be in the Goblet of Fire?? Casting for the PoA has officially closed, but there is still hope for GoF! Leavesden Studios have set up a special casting office to which you can write from January 2004. You can only contact the casting office at the Studios. Send a short letter and a recent photograph to: Casting Office Leavesden Studios PO Box 322 Watford Hertfordshire WD25 7XJ And they can't reply to everybody, but you may stand a better chance of getting a reply if you include a self-addressed envelope. News tip from CBBC Newsround. Changes for PoA: There will be a new director, Alfonso Cuarón ("To be entrusted with such rich and beloved material, and given the opportunity to collaborate with this extraordinary cast and crew on the next Harry Potter adventure is an honor," Alfonso Cuarón said. "I look forward to bringing this intricate story to the screen and sharing it with film audiences around the world.") Christopher Columbus, the director of the first two films, will be producing the third There will be a new character playing Professor Dumbledore, Michael Gambon In Addition... John Williams will compose the score for PoA (he did the other two as well, and might do the fourth). To view the entire cast, click here. There was an article in the Chicago Sun Times about the new movie... Alakazam! Changes abound for boy wizard June 22, 2003 BY CINDY PEARLMAN The power of Potter cannot be underestimated: Let the countdown begin. As of today, on the weekend when the latest Potter tome hits the shelves, there are only 347 days until "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" debuts at a multiplex near you on June 4, 2004. Fans aren't the only ones counting the days. Filmmakers know that the pressure is on to deliver the goods on this third "Harry Potter" film. Producer David Heyman reports that a certain hormonal change before cameras started rolling was quite fortuitous. "Daniel's voice did break before we started filming--thank goodness," he says. "Actually, Daniel, Emma and Rupert becoming teens works for us because in the next movie, they really grow and change." Each of the young actors--Daniel Radcliffe (Harry), Emma Watson (Hermione) and Rupert Grint (Ron)--are back in the next film installment, which also features some interesting adult stars. Gary Oldman is the evil Sirius Black, Julie Christie is Madam Rosmerta and John Cleese returns as Headless Nick. Meanwhile, Robbie Coltrane remains on the premises as the beloved giant Hagrid. Sadly, beloved British actor Richard Harris passed away last year, leading to much speculation over who will fill his wizard's hat as Hogwarts' leader Professor Dumbledore. Actors Christopher Lee, Ian McKellen, Terrence Stamp and Peter O'Toole were in the running. But the new Dumbledore will be played by Michael Gambon, another veteran British actor. Before Harris' death, Heyman said, "It really is hard to imagine anyone but Richard Harris as Dumbledore." But the movies go on. And in this version of the J.K. Rowling epic, it's the summer before Harry's third year at Hogwarts, and he's feeling pretty angry, which brings on his powers. Meanwhile, the evil Sirius wants to kill our boy wonder. Being back on a "Harry Potter" set is more than fine with the young actors involved. "It's good to be back filming. I miss Harry when I'm not pretending to be him. I just love putting on those glasses and becoming Harry again," says Radcliffe, whose entire life has changed since becoming the bespectacled superkid. "I'm recognized quite a bit, but generally it's very polite. A lot of the time, I get, 'You look a lot like the boy who stars in those movies.' I'll reply, 'He's a nice boy.'" Out is director and former Chicagoan Chris Columbus, who stepped down from the "Harry" helm. He has been replaced by director Alfonso Cuaron, known for his breakthrough work on "Y Tu Mama Tambien" (2001), and "A Little Princess" (1995). Columbus says that he took a pass because his own children are now 13, 8 and 5. "They want me home at night," he says. "They want me there for school nights. They want me to be their dad and not in charge of Harry anymore." The screenplay for "Azkaban" was written by Steven Kloves, who also penned "Wonder Boys" (2000) and "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" (2001). He also will write the fourth "Harry" film, "The Goblet of Fire." Columbus, who will produce the third film, insists that the movie "will be faithful, but it can't include every moment of the book. That would be a seven-hour film. The key is to make Jo Rowling happy. She'll let us know if she sees something in the script that's missing." One faithful reader of the books embraces the differences between the films and the tomes. "Obviously everyone has an opinion," Radcliffe says. "You either like the films or not. If you like the books, I think you'll like the movies. I think the films do stand up on their own. It doesn't help to nitpick." For producer Heyman, it was a relief that the first films were embraced. "There has been such a pressure not to mess this up," he says. It's been a long haul for Heyman, who first caught a glimpse of an article about Rowling six years ago. "I was interested in children's property and someone in my office found an article about these Harry Potter books. I had my secretary take the first book home, which was on my slush pile. She came back and told me that it was interesting. Something about a boy who goes to wizard school." Why does he think the books and films are so popular? "The themes are universal," Heyman says. "They're about loyalty, family, friendship and finding a place where you belong. Neither the books nor the films talk down to the children. "The emotions are real. The kids give honest performances, and the fantasy seems accessible. Harry is flawed, but he's capable of great things. Just like all of us." Will we see Harry as a teen? "It's a possibility," Heyman says. "We have to move quickly before we see a bearded Daniel." The schedule is rough, because filming time is limited due to children's labor rules. "You have nine hours a day for the kids to work, plus three hours of education and 15-minute breaks every hour. You end up with your lead actors for about four hours a day, and Harry is in every scene. It's brutal." "At one point, the studio will probably have to make casting changes," Columbus says. "The kids will grow up and want to move on with their lives. It's a naive fantasy to think that the kids will want to do seven Harry Potter films. I don't know if any of us will have the energy." The fans might demand that they keep the magic going, however. For his part, Radcliffe understands why kids are wild about Harry. "He's loyal. He's curious. He's smart. Who wouldn't want to be like him?" Distributed by Big Picture News