Chris Columbus, the director who kicked off the Harry Potter films with Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets, isn’t too thrilled about HBO’s reboot. The OG filmmaker recently came across leaked photos from the London set, where Nick Frost steps in as Hagrid and Dominic McLaughlin as the new Harry. What caught his eye was how the costume looked almost identical to the one he and his team originally designed for Robbie Coltrane in the Daniel Radcliffe lead movie, leaving him questioning the whole point of the remake.Harry Potter original director slams HBO rebootAppearing on The Rest Is Entertainment podcast, Columbus explained he expected HBO to create something fresh, but instead it felt like déjà vu. At the same time, he found it flattering that his work is still influencing the series, hinting that showrunners still rely on old charms. Columbus said that while a part of him is curious and excited to see what the new version will do, he doesn’t feel jealous. He made it clear he has moved on from Potter, saying he’s proud of the first three films he worked on but has no interest in revisiting the franchise. “I thought the costumes and everything was going to be different, but it’s more of the same. It’s all going to be the same,” he said, adding, “What’s the point.”Also read: Charlie Hunnam transforms into notorious serial killer who inspired Psycho, Silence of the Lambs in first look of Netflix’s Monster The Ed Gein StoryHe compared J.K. Rowling’s story to Gremlins and The Goonies, projects where he avoided sequels because, for him, once it’s done, it’s done. “Jealous? No. It’s time to move on,” the director said. “I’ve always had issues with the idea of franchise. I feel like I’ve done it … I’m really proud of those films, the first three that I was involved with, and I’m moving on.” Interestingly, Columbus also mentioned the things the films couldn’t include. For example, the ghost Peeves was actually shot with Rik Mayall but got edited out because CGI didn’t work. He’s curious to see how HBO handles that character, along with other details the books had but wasn’t shown in the movie because of technical issues. While promoting his new Netflix film The Thursday Murder Club, Columbus also spoke about the original Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint. He said he is proud of Radcliffe in particular and recalled how lessons from Home Alone helped him and the producer David Heyman protect the young actors from fame pressure while involving their parents in the project. Seeing Radcliffe now winning a Tony Award makes him emotional and proud. However, Columbus distanced himself from JK Rowling’s controversy. The author had earlier received backlash for controversial political stance on transgender issues. Addressing the same in an interview with Variety he said, “I like to sometimes separate the artist from the art, I think that’s important to do. It’s unfortunate, what’s happened. I certainly don’t agree with what she’s talking about. But it’s just sad, it’s very sad.”Also read: Re-reading Harry Potter as an adult: What the magic feels like in your 30sIn a separate interview with the Standard, Chris Columbus said he recently bumped into Nick Frost and admitted that it felt strange seeing him in that role. “I told him, ‘This is very surreal for me — you have to understand, Robbie Coltrane and I were so close.’ So it’s just weird, bizarre,” he said. Meanwhile, Nick Frost has also spoken about stepping into the legendary character. Earlier this year, he told Collider that while Robbie Coltrane’s version was iconic, he won’t be copying his style and will instead bring something new to the table. “I’m not going to try something totally ‘different,’ because you have to respect the source. But within that, there’s space for little details,” Frost said. “I always saw Hagrid as this big, warm, funny, but also slightly lost and violent child. The beauty of doing one book per season is I’ll actually get the time to explore that, and I can’t wait.”Story continues below this adHBO, for its part, says the new Harry Potter series, expected to land in 2027, will be a faithful retelling of all seven book. Each season of the show will cover one novel.Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd