Viewers don’t get an instant classic developed into a multi-million dollar film franchise by accident. Since J.K. Rowling first published her children’s fantasy books about Harry Potter, the boy wizard, readers were hooked. Harry had all the makings of a true chosen one. Orphaned at a young age, Harry endured mistreatment from blood relations before learning that all his suffering had been for something. He is a wizard, ultimately destined to destroy the most evil sorcerer of all time.

Harry Potter remains a celebrated book series, but oftentimes, film adaptations can make foundational moments in the books seem ridiculous. Though the Harry Potter films stayed true to the source material for the most part, seeing it take shape on screen is another thing entirely. Some moments in the films push the narrative of the story into the realm of disbelief.

The Dursleys Should’ve Been Reported For Child Abuse

Harry Potter required a lot of suspension of disbelief, but shockingly enough, one of the strangest parts of the films has nothing to do with magic. Harry’s home life with his mother’s extended family challenged what is in the realm of possibility. From the moment that Petunia and her husband Vernon set eyes on Harry, they made up their minds to hate him. While their rejection of Harry is an obvious metaphor for people shunning what they don’t understand, neighbors, at the very least, should have noticed the underfed boy shut in a closet at a young age.

The Dursleys took an almost sadistic pleasure in making Harry an indentured servant of sorts. He lived in a small cupboard and did chores for his spoiled cousin, Dudley. Harry got more freedom later, but it shouldn’t have gone past the notice of fellow muggles the incident of Vernon putting bars on Harry’s window. If Harry Potter had more realism, it wouldn’t have taken long before someone did a welfare check on the frail boy with no family.

Harry Kills a Man During His First Year at Hogwarts

Harry was constantly thrust into situations that he had no reason to plan for. He never asked to be The Chosen One or for Voldemort to kill his entire family. But as this was the card that he was dealt, he had to make do. That meant defending himself against a homicidal teacher, intent on bringing his Dark Lord back from the brink of death.

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In Harry’s first year, he learns that Professor Quirrell was actually a creature of Voldemort’s with his same weakness. Voldemort was unable to touch Harry because of the lasting magic of Lily’s love that saved him as a baby. This extended to Quirrell, and in a moment of desperation, Harry put into practice the only magic he knew how. After laying hands on Quirrell and causing terrifying burns, the professor simply disintegrated. This made Quirrell’s demise seem less premeditated, but no one can ignore that when Quirrell crumbled to dust, it was because an 11-year-old boy killed him.

Harry Using Magic Outside Hogwarts Was Ridiculous In Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter had to thread the difficult needle of childish tomfoolery and the dark material found in later books. Earlier books and the subsequent film adaptation leaned into what may have been more acceptable when it was written, but has not aged gracefully. A prime example of this is in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban when, in a fit of rage, Harry used magic against Aunt Marge.

Many of the main descriptors of the Dursleys’ side of the family make a point of commenting on their weight, vilifying characters who do not have a slimmer body type. Prisoner of Azkaban put a fine point to this when Harry enlarged Marge so much that she flew away like a balloon. What may have been funny at the time is now an uncomfortable depiction of intolerance.

Harry Can’t Back Out of the Triwizard Tournament

Certain plot points are needed to further the story, but some are more hamfisted than others. One such moment came in The Goblet of Fire when Harry was forced to compete in the deadly Triwizard Tournament. Though he did not put his name in the cup and is far under the age limit for students to compete, he was forced to do so nevertheless.

Harry insisted that he didn’t put his name in the goblet but was still unable to withdraw from the competition. Authorities argued that the Triwizard Tournament is a magically binding contract, but the specifics of it are not explored further. Even though it seems that Dumbledore could easily remove Harry from the games, he put the 14-year-old boy in danger and in the grips of Voldemort once again. This represented the many moments when Dumbledore’s eccentricities put his students’ lives at risk.

Harry Almost Kills Draco Malfoy

Harry is a typical Gryffindor, jumping into things without thinking. This trait gets him into more trouble than not, and in one instance, caused him to almost kill another Hogwarts student. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, while a convoluted adaptation, had many dark themes incorporated into the story. Harry was (rightfully) convinced that Draco Malfoy had recently been initiated into the Death Eaters.

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Full of knowledge of the potions book annotated by the titular character, Harry slung a curse at Malfoy, unaware of what it actually did. It turned out to be a torturous spell that came close to killing his school rival. While Malfoy and Harry were often at odds, this was a bridge too far even for Harry. He understood the ramifications of what he had done, but that didn’t fix everything. Harry’s spell was a crime in the halls of a school against another student who came close to death. Harry wasn’t expelled, but it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility to even send him to the wizard prison, Azkaban, for the crime.

Harry Went Back to School With a Serial Killer On the Loose

Harry was put in many dangerous situations during his time at Hogwarts, arguably more than any teenager should go through. Prisoner of Azkaban contributed to this trend by putting Harry in the crosshairs of someone who was presumed to be a serial killer. While the Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts were highly aware that Sirius Black was accused of killing Harry’s parents and was on the loose, they made no mention of it to Harry and put him back in school.

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Harry Potter Fumbled 1 Major Character With a Sudden Death (But JK Rowling Defends the Choice)

Despite being a key player in the Harry Potter franchise, Sirius Black’s death felt hugely lacking compared to other character deaths in the series.

Perhaps Hogwarts was the safest place for Harry, but the school administration didn’t warn the young boy or explain Sirius’ motives to him. The information that Sirius Black was Harry’s godfather and was convicted for killing his parents may be heavy material, but keeping this information from Harry was negligent at best. It turned out that Sirius remained loyal to the Potters, so there was no real danger, but the school wasn’t aware of that at the time.

Harry’s Trial In Order of the Phoenix Is Overzealous

Voldemort may have returned in the events of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, but the Ministry of Magic didn’t let anyone think so. The government refused to believe that the Dark Lord was back and took it out on a 15-year-old boy for casting a Patronus charm in the presence of a Muggle. After Harry was released for blowing up his aunt in the third film, Harry was unjustly punished for using magic in the fifth when it actually mattered.

The argument surrounding Harry’s trial was baffling and did not adhere to any logic. Harry was tried for performing the Patronus, but no one seemed to wonder why he would do so. The only real reason why someone would cast such a powerful piece of magic is because a horrifying Dementor would be nearby. The Ministry didn’t even consider the likelihood that one could be lurking near Harry, especially after Voldemort’s return. This trial was a frustrating misuse of government funds as the Ministry refused to listen to reason.

Lucius Malfoy Tries to Kill Harry On School Grounds

Lucius Malfoy is a Harry Potter character who is an unequivocal villain. Draco’s father has no room for nuance and does unspeakable acts with no room for redemption. On top of enslaving House-elves and contributing to genocide, Lucius also tried to kill Harry when he was only 12 years old.

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Why Dobby Helped Harry Potter In Chamber Of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets introduced Dobby as a complicated ally. But why did he decide to help Harry Potter in the first place?

In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry tricked Malfoy into freeing Dobby the House-elf, which in turn motivated Lucius to try the Killing Curse on the boy. Dobby didn’t let this happen and used magic to stop him, but that didn’t erase the fact that an adult would have murdered a student in the hallways of a school. This also would have been a tricky situation later, after Harry was revealed to be the Horcrux Voldemort never meant to make. He could have contributed to his master’s demise without even knowing it, had he cast Avada Kedavra.

Hermione is Tortured in The Deathly Hallows

The final movies in the Harry Potter franchise culminate in all-out war, and during wartime, the worst can happen. But it is beneficial to keep in mind that this is still a children’s series, and some scenes are intense, even for adults. The most brutal was the torture of Muggle-born Hermione Granger at the hands of the sadistic Bellatrix Lestrange.

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Bellatrix demanded to know how Hermione and her friends got their hands on the sword of Gryffindor when it was supposed to be tucked away in her vault. She singled out Hermione, the brilliant witch with Muggle parentage, to find out what happened. Bellatrix tortured Hermione, carving the word “mudblood” into her arm, which focused on the real reason why Bellatrix enjoyed torturing the girl so much. This scene not only showed a teenager in excruciating pain but also hammered home the racism prevalent in wizard society.

Dumbledore Always Knew Harry Would Never Make It to Adulthood

The Dumbledore twist in The Deathly Hallows was one of the most surprising, specifically because of how cold-blooded it was. For all of Harry’s life, he operated under the assumption that Dumbledore cared for him as no parent could have, only to learn that the Headmaster was raising him to die at the right time.

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Dumbledore had to keep Harry alive so he could face Voldemort when all the Horcruxes were destroyed. Voldemort had to be the one to kill Harry and destroy the final Horcrux, which would ultimately kill the Dark Lord. Knowing Harry, Dumbledore’s decision to keep that information from him wouldn’t have impacted his decision in the end. Had the most Powerful Wizard In the world even thought to put this information in Harry’s hands, things may have ended up differently for everyone. Harry chose to do the right thing in the end, as he always would have. Instead, Dumbledore’s legacy was tainted with his cruel decision.

Harry Potter

Created by

J.K. Rowling

First Film

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

Latest Film

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2

Upcoming TV Shows

Harry Potter

Where to watch

HBO Max

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