Chinese moviegoers return to Hogwarts as Harry Potter films make a comeback

By Xinhua writers Huang Yuzhang, Cheng Zhuo, Shi Yifei

BEIJING, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- As the lights dimmed and the iconic music swelled, Harry Potter fans in China once again stepped onto Platform 9¾, boarded the Hogwarts Express, and entered the enchanting world of witches and wizards.

"Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home," reads a post from the official Warner Bros. Pictures account on Weibo, China's X-like social media platform, on Sept. 20, announcing that the eight-episode Harry Potter series would start its re-release across China from Oct. 11, one installment after another at intervals of a week.

The post has cheered up the films' Chinese fans, garnering more than 13,000 likes and 1,821 comments, and being reposted 7,971 times so far.

Among the many viewers was 41-year-old Lan Lan, who brought her nine-year-old son to a cinema in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region for "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," the second installment of the series. She first watched the movie 20 years ago.

"It felt like reliving the magic that had enthralled me when I was a teenager and read the first Harry Potter book," Lan said after watching the film. "It brought me back to the old days when I shared the Harry Potter books with my classmates, watched the premieres of Harry Potter movies at midnight, went on shopping sprees for Harry Potter tie-ins, and discussed the series with other fans on the internet."

Lan's son also enjoyed the movie and was immediately fascinated by the tricks and spells of the magical world.

On Chinese social media, Lan's passion has been echoed by many. "It was like reading the memoirs of my old friends, and I couldn't hold back my tears when I watched the series again," one Weibo user wrote.

The first two movies in the iconic series have already been screened in Chinese theaters nationwide, with the most recent re-release -- "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" -- generating box office revenue of more than 37 million yuan (about 5.2 million U.S. dollars) in just five days.

"The Harry Potter IP has a strong appeal for numerous viewers," said Liu Yinan, duty manager of a movie theater in Beijing, adding that some would also buy tie-ins, such as mystery boxes, prepared by the cinema.

While the Felix Felicis, "liquid luck" potion, works for about 12 hours in the Harry Potter universe, the charm of the re-released movies has an even more lasting effect, as indicated by the box office figures.

The first film in the Harry Potter series was re-released in China four years ago and proved a hit, raking in 192 million yuan at the box office, according to data from ticketing platform Maoyan.

"Behind the rerun of the fantasy series lies a huge and ever-growing fan base that spans different age groups," said Wei Jiayue, a longtime Harry Potter fan. "They have been attracted by the imaginative magical world and the timeless themes that are related to human nature and real life."

For many, the relish of watching movies in theaters is alive and well for classics like the Harry Potter series, despite the allure of online streaming services. Some took these reruns as an opportunity to gather and share their feelings with like-minded people.

Images of nearly 700 smiling fans, clad in black-hooded robes and holding wands or broomsticks, have been posted on Weibo, illustrating the enthusiasm of the series' fan base.

The Harry Potter movies are not the only films that have returned to Chinese cinemas. In recent years, a growing number of movies at home and abroad have been reissued in China, including the domestic sci-fi series "The Wandering Earth," and the world-renowned tentpole movies "Titanic" and "Avatar."

One of the latest successful examples is "Your Name," a Japanese anime film released eight years ago, which became a blockbuster again this July, earning nearly 38 million yuan on the first day of its re-release.

The 4K restoration of the 1994 French thriller, "Leon: The Professional," is also coming to China in November. It will be the first time for the film by director Luc Besson to hit the screens on the Chinese mainland.

"The popularity of relaunched movies reflects profound changes in the movie market," said Sun Yanbin, an expert at the Beijing Film Academy. "The film reruns can provide more options for viewers and meet their diverse demands."

From the perspective of theaters, re-releases are a cost-effective way to fill scheduling gaps and boost box office revenues as the movie industry is reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic, said Zhang Yiwu, a professor at Peking University.

For fans like Lan, it is worthwhile to spend time and money on nostalgia. "The Harry Potter movies tell a story of love, friendship and strength, and they are definitely worth watching for both me and my son," she said.

This trip to the cinema was her son's first glimpse into the magical world. "He said he wanted a wand and asked me to take him to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at the Universal Beijing Resort," said Lan.

On the Chinese lifestyle-sharing platform Xiaohongshu, a fan writes: "Great works know no bounds, transcending time and ages of their viewers."