Chris Columbus, director of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, recently expressed interest in directing another Harry Potter film — set before the events of the Deathly Hallows epilogue. Asked about returning to the ‘Potter’ universe, Columbus said:
“I would love to go back and do another one. “Not Fantastic Beasts as much, which I think is going to be amazing, but I would love to do another movie with those three characters – Harry, Hermione, and Ron. “I’m just fascinated about what happened to them after the end of the last movie, because then they cut to 18 years ahead. There’s 18 years there of great Harry Potter stories,” he said.
And what does J.K. Rowling think of the idea? Columbus mused, “I don’t have the courage to actually mention that to her because I have such respect for her. She should do what she wants to do, but I really would love to know what’s in her head about those missing years.”
Chris Columbus directed Philosopher’s Stone in 2001 and Chamber of Secrets in 2002. He returned as a producer on Prisoner of Azkaban in 2004 before parting with the franchise to spend more time with his family.