“Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone” Starts Production In England

(November 7, 2000 – Burbank, CA) - Warner Bros. is proud to announce that production is underway in the U.K. on the feature film adaptation of the first of JK Rowling’s magical Harry Potter books, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.” The announcement was made today by Lorenzo di Bonaventura, President, Worldwide Theatrical Production, Warner Bros. Pictures. The film is directed by Chris Columbus (“Mrs. Doubtfire,” “Home Alone,” “Stepmom”) and produced by David Heyman (“Juice,” “Daytrippers”). In addition to Chris Columbus, Mark Radcliffe (“Mrs. Doubtfire,” “Stepmom,” “Home Alone 2”), Michael Barnathan (“Stepmom,” “Nine Months”) and Duncan Henderson (“The Perfect Storm,” “Outbreak,” “Home Alone 2”) are executive producers. “Harry Potter And the Sorcerer’s Stone” stars 11-year-old Daniel Radcliffe (“The Tailor of Panama,” BBC TV's “David Copperfield”) in the title role, with newcomers 10-year-old Emma Watson and 12-year-old Rupert Grint as Harry's friends, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, respectively. The film also stars John Cleese (“The World Is Not Enough,” “A Fish Called Wanda,” Monty Python troupe) as Nearly Headless Nick aka Sir Nicholas De Mimsy-Popington; Robbie Coltrane (“Nuns on the Run,” “GoldenEye,” “The World is Not Enough”) as the world's favorite giant, Hagrid; Richard Griffiths (“Sleepy Hollow,” “Naked Gun 2,” “King Ralph”) as Harry’s Uncle Vernon; Richard Harris (“Gladiator,” “Unforgiven,” “Camelot”) as Hogwarts’ all-knowing Professor Dumbledore; Ian Hart (“Land and Freedom,” “Hollow Reed,” “Backbeat”) as Professor of the Dark Arts Quirrell; Alan Rickman (“Truly Madly Deeply,” “Sense and Sensibility,” “Die Hard”) as Potions Professor Snape; Fiona Shaw (“My Left Foot,” “The Butcher Boy,” Franco Zeffirelli's “Jane Eyre”) as Harry's Aunt Petunia; Dame Maggie Smith (“Tea With Mussolini,” “Richard III,” “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie”) as Dumbledore’s loyal deputy, Professor McGonagall; Julie Walters (“Billy Elliot,” “Educating Rita,” “Personal Services”) as Mrs. Weasley, mother of Harry’s best friend, Ron; and Zoë Wanamaker (“Wilde,” “Raggedy Rawney,” “The Hunger”) showing how to master the art of broom riding as Madame Hooch. The film also includes some the industry's greatest creative filmmaking talents. Academy Award winner John Seale (“The English Patient, “The Perfect Storm,” “Rain Man”) is director of photography, and three-time Academy Award-winning production designer Stuart Craig (“The English Patient,” “Dangerous Liaisons,” “Gandhi”) will create the wonderful world of Hogwarts. Academy Award nominee Judianna Makovsky (“Little Princess,” “Pleasantville,” “Reversal of Fortune”) is costume designer and three time Academy Award nominee Richard Francis-Bruce (“The Shawshank Redemption,” “The Perfect Storm,” “Air Force One”) is the editor. Harry Potter is the central character in a series of books for children and adults alike that has swept the world. Written by British author J.K. Rowling, the books follow the exploits of a boy who learns on his eleventh birthday that he is the orphaned son of two powerful wizards and possesses unique magical powers of his own. He is summoned from his life as an unwanted child to become a student at Hogwarts, a boarding school for wizards. There, Harry meets a close circle of friends that becomes his new family. Ultimately, with their help, he takes on the powerful figure who was responsible for his parents’ death. “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone” will be released by Warner Bros. in the US and UK in November 2001. # # #