Last night I was one of the fan sites invited to cover the Grand Opening of Harry Potter: The Exhibit and the release of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 DVD. We were able to stand on the red carpet and take photos of the actors in attendence. Sadly my photos didn’t come out too great, but there are some pretty great gems. So head over to the gallery to check out all 120+ images! There are also some better quality photos at the end courtesy of zimbio.
The stars in attendance were Evanna Lynch, Natalia Tena, David Thewlis, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Freddie Stroma, Bonnie Wright, Clemence Poesy, Domhnall Gleeson, Warwick Davis, Helen McCrory, Mark Williams, Michael Gambon and Robbie Coltrane! David Barron and David Heyman were also at the event. You can pre-order Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on DVD or BluRay, to be released on April 11th in the UK and April 15th in the USA, at the following links:
Today the Apple store in SoHo had a cast Q&A session with members of the Harry Potter cast. David Barron, David Heyman, Michael Gambon, Warwick Davis, Robbie Coltrane, Helen McCrory, David Thewlis, Natalia Tena, Bonnie Wright, Evanna Lynch, Freddie Stroma and the Phelps twins were in attendance. I was at the event on behalf of the website but no flash photography or recording of the event were permitted so to hear all of the answers you will have to wait for Apple to release the vide, which should be later tonight. I did try to take some photos but they didn’t come out. Here is a small preview though.
The cast were asked what their favorite scene was, whether they filmed it or they just enjoyed it. Their answers are as follows (is is not exact wording, I was feverishly writing so I would remember what they said)
Michael Gambon – his scenes in the Great Hall making speeches David Heyman – Less actiony scenes such as Harry flying Buckbeak, Harry and Hermione dancing in DH, and when the Gryffindor boys ate the animal candies David Barron – the “no post on Sundays” scene from SS Robbie Coltrane – Norbert hatching and subsequently catching his beard on fire Warwick Davis – the Tale of the Three Brothers animation as well as his stage dive in GoF Helen McCrory – Harry confronting Voldemort in Part 2 David Thewlis – Aunt Marge being blown up and turning into a werewolf Natalia Tena – the Tale of the Three Brothers animation and flying on broomsticks Bonnie Wright – filming in the Chamber of Secrets because it was a turning point for Ginny and the Epilogue Oliver Phelps – Giving Harry the Mauraders Map and the twins fight in GoF James Phelps – the joke shop scenes in HBP Evanna Lynch – the Weasley wedding because it showed that wizards are normal, the people dancing in the background specifically Freddie Stroma – Quidditch scenes; they just threw balls at him and he had to hit them away which made for some interesting moments; smashing a light, hitting a fan, and hitting a person
I will post the link to the video when it is available for download
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 has been nominated for some Critics’ Choice Awards. The awards will air on January 4th at 9pm est. You can vote by heading to this page!
Best Makeup (against Alice in Wonderland, Black Swan and True Grit)
Best Visual Effects (against Alice in Wonderland, Inception and Tron: Legacy)
The following and nominations are for films that Harry Potter actors are in:
Best Picture: The King’s Speech (Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Gambon, Timothy Spall)
Best Supporting Actress: Helena Bonham Carter (The King’s Speech)
Best Acting Ensemble: The King’s Speech (Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Gambon, Timothy Spall)
The nominations for the 17th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards have been announced and a few Harry Potter stars have been nominated for their work in other films! The nominations are as follows:
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role:
HELENA BONHAM CARTER / Queen Elizabeth – “THE KING’S SPEECH” (The Weinstein Company)
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
THE KING’S SPEECH (The Weinstein Company)
HELENA BONHAM CARTER / Queen Elizabeth
MICHAEL GAMBON / King George V
TIMOTHY SPALL / Winston Churchill
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
BOARDWALK EMPIRE (HBO)
KELLY MACDONALD / Margaret Schroeder
The Arts Desk has a brand new interview with Dumbledore actor Michael Gambon where he discusses his career and mentions Harry Potter briefly.
Is Harry Potter a life sentence? No I like Harry Potter. I died in the sixth one.
How did you find out that you died? Erm, I think I read it in the paper. I read I’d died. It was such a shock. I thought, Jesus Christ.
Have you read the books? I just read the scripts. I know people read the whole book but then you get cross about what’s missing. A lot of actors get upset that their parts are a bit smaller.
To what extent did you have to inherit Richard Harris’s performance? No one ever spoke to me about it. Not a word. On the first film I did which was directed by Alfonso Cuaron I walked in there and I’m naturally Irish and my first accent is Irish, I will speak Irish with my parents, and I played just a slight touch of Trinity College Dublin. That light lilt. I did that and Alfonso said, “What’s the accent here?” I said, “Irish.” He said, “That’s OK.” And no one’s ever mentioned it. I’m a little bit more camp, I think, a bit lighter. A bit more ethereal.
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