Chris Columbus was worried he would be fired; Credits: Koimoi

Harry Potter has been a cult favorite for over two decades, and fans just can't get enough of the films based on the books of J. K. Rowling. The story of a boy whose world changes in a day as he learns that he is a wizard soon became one of the most viewed and critically acclaimed film franchises of all time.

Featuring Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint, the film soon made these child actors some of the most well-known names of all time. Now that the film series has stepped into its third decade of fan love and appreciation, Chris Columbus, the director of the series, talked with Variety on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the film.

When asked if the director felt any 'pressure' when he was chosen to direct the hit film series, Columbus shared, "I had every expectation that I would probably be fired within the first two weeks. I was very, I don’t want to say anxious, but aware of the fact that if I screw this up, I probably will never work again. And I would have millions of fans at my door just infuriated."

The director also said that he met Rowling once he was done with the film to get to know her perspective. He relayed, "I flew to Scotland to meet with her, and we talked for about two and a half, maybe three hours, to explain my vision for the film. She didn’t say much. Then when I finished, she said, “I see the film exactly the same way.” I thought, ‘Oh, my God, I’ve got it.’ That was a moment of pure elation followed quickly by sheer panic. I knew I had to deliver a film that would not only please fans but also myself because I was a fan."

The director acted along with the young actors as the 'fourth character;' Credits: The Things

Then he followed with his recital of the time when he pitched his ideas for the film to be cast as the director of the franchise. He revealed, "She felt like we were in sync. She had been through meetings with other directors, and there was always talk about combining the first two books, adding cheerleaders to the Quidditch game, and all things she wasn’t into."

Then he continued to tell his decision about casting an entirely British cast and told, "Also, I was determined to keep the film with an entirely British cast. That was probably one of the most important things for her."

Like all other Harry Potter enthusiasts, the director Chris Columbus is also a fan of the film's lead actors, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint. But working with three young actors with not a lot of experience beforehand, shooting wasn't entirely a piece of cake.

Hence, the filmmaker shared, "In the first film, there was not a lot of professional experience between the three leads. That’s why that film was filled with so many cuts. I could only really shoot, for the first three months, a close-up of one of the actors before they would lose concentration."

But by the time the actors had moved to the second film, they mastered their roles. Columbus said, "By the time we got to the second film, we were able to do tracking shots, and the kids could shoot a master and have a conversation within those shots. They became very professional by the time they got to “Chamber of Secrets,” and then by the time we did “Prisoner of Azkaban,” you could basically shoot the entire film in 15 single takes if you wanted.'

One of the best scenes that featured in the Harry Potter franchise was the Quidditch scenes. With a lot of action and emotion-packed into the players, the scenes required considerable work. Also especially, because a lot of it was done with green screens. Talking about the hardest scenes to film, Columbus said, "Quidditch comes to mind because it was a lot of green screen work. That was a situation where the kids couldn’t see anything, they had nothing tangible to work with." He continued, "I basically became the fourth actor in the movie because a lot of these situations, there’s nothing there for them."

Also, at times when they had to pretend a prop was there in case of scenes that required editing, later on, the director had to act like the 'fourth character' so that the kids could relate. He told, "It was very physical in terms of me pretending to be whatever character, whether it was Voldemort on the back of Quirrell’s head or the Basilisk in the second film." He called the method 'insane,' and yet the end product was fascinating. "I was off-camera pretending to be those characters, which is quite insane if you think about it, but the only way I could actually get some of those performances out of the kids when they didn’t have anything to react to," he added.

Columbus said that he is proud of the Harry Potter series; Credits: Twitter 

The American film director also revealed that he usually sees Harry Potter films during the holiday season. He said, "I see pieces of it all the time, particularly from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day when it’s on every single cable channel 24 -7. If I’m flipping through the channels, I’ll stop and watch a scene." He also added that he is 'very proud" of the productions as he said, "It is very melancholy because I’m very proud of this first film. Being able to smile and realize people are watching this 20 years down the road, it’s a nice feeling."

Just like many of us fans, the director totally fell in love with Dan when he referred to Hogwarts as his home and wasn't particularly elated to go home back to the Dursleys. He shared, "There’s a moment with Dan as he looks back to Hogwarts, and someone mentions something about going home. And he said his line: “I’m not going home, not really.” I remember looking over at David Heyman, we’re standing next to each other, and I yelled, “cut.” David and I both had tears in our eyes. We were like, “That was beautiful.” He was fantastic."

The turning point of Harry's life was when he got to know that he was a wizard, and it was important that the actor, Robbie Coltrane, delivered the lines just as Hagrid would to Harry. The director praised the actor's work as he said, "Robbie Coltrane delivering the line “You’re a wizard, Harry,” he got it on the first take. I probably did two other takes for safety, but he knew that character inside out." Talking about the actor who played Snape, Alan Rickman, Columbus told, "Even Alan Rickman had some insight because he had dinner with Jo Rawling and Jo explained to him where the character was going. He knew exactly how to play Snape in his very first scene because he knew where Snape was going to end up in books."

The director also shared that he would love to direct The Cursed Child film, and honestly, it is the only dream of Harry Potter fans. The director said, "I would love to direct “The Cursed Child.” It’s a great play, and the kids are actually the right age to play those roles. It’s a small fantasy of mine."

Chris Columbus shared that he would love to direct 'The Cursed Child;' Credits: Flickering Myth

It would be great to see the actors reprise their famous roles and bring the magical world to screens once again.