Daniel Radcliffe has admitted he hasn’t made his mind up as to whether he’ll be tuning into the new TV adaptation of the Harry Potter books when it premieres next month.
US broadcaster HBO is currently in the process of adapting all seven of JK Rowling’s novels for the small screen, with one season dedicated to each book.
The first of these, Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone, will debut on Christmas Day, with Daniel – who portrayed the title character in the original film series – casting doubt on whether or not he’ll be checking out for himself.
“I don’t know if I will, honestly,” he told the Associated Press when asked if he’ll be watching the new Harry Potter. “I’ve watched [and] been in a lot of ‘Harry Potter’ already.”
He pointed out: “Also, I don’t watch any TV. I haven’t seen Breaking Bad; I haven’t seen Mad Men; I haven’t seen some of the real classics.
“So, you know. Eight hours is a lot of anything to watch.”
Daniel also reiterated that he hasn’t felt the need to give Dominic McLaughlin, the 12-year-old actor who will be taking over as Harry in the TV adaptation, any advice about playing the role.
“I’m really, truly in the business of not giving Dominic advice. He’s got it. He doesn’t need any advice from me,” he insisted.
Daniel continued: “If I say something to you, then the next interview people have with him, they’ll be like, ‘Oh, Dan said you should do this.’ And I don’t want to haunt this poor child through interviews. So I have no advice for him.
“He’s gonna be amazing, and I hope that I will – I think I’ll get to meet him someday and I’m very excited about that.”
In the lead-up to its release, the Harry Potter series has been somewhat controversial already, largely due to the involvement of JK Rowling as an executive producer.
HBO previously said: “We are proud to once again tell the story of Harry Potter – the heartwarming books that speak to the power of friendship, resolve and acceptance.
“JK Rowling has a right to express her personal views. We will remain focused on the development of the new series, which will only benefit from her involvement.”
