Potter

Maybe you can use a laugh this morning. Maybe you’re still deep in your feelings, thinking about the “Hacks” series finale and that shot of Hannah Einbinder looking at Jean Smart on the dance floor, grief seeping into her eyes. Maybe you’re lamenting the chaos at our treasured national parks. Hell … maybe you took out a loan to buy a tomato over the weekend.

If you’re feeling down, Gary Oldman would like a word. And that word is: Hufflepuff.

I’m Glenn Whipp, columnist for the Los Angeles Times and host of The Envelope newsletter, back in your inbox for the next few weeks as we navigate our way through Emmy season.

Digital cover story: The world according to Gary

(Jennifer McCord / For The Times)

Gary Oldman is a Hufflepuff.

Never mind that the 68-year-old actor, who played the rebellious, impulsive wizard Sirius Black in the Harry Potter film franchise, couldn’t tell you the difference between a Hufflepuff and, say, a Gryffindor.

When journalist Josh Horowitz reads a list of core personality qualities — loyalty, hard work, patience, fairness, dedication — and asks Oldman if that describes him, he nods his head.

You’re a Hufflepuff.

“I’m a Hufflepuff?” Oldman says, trying the word on for size. He likes it. “I’m a Hufflepuff!”

This video clip is a favorite of mine, one I could watch on a loop for the sheer delight Oldman takes in pronouncing the word Hufflepuff.

It’s easy to see why Oldman takes such pleasure in being a granddad these days, one of the things we talked about at length not long ago for an Envelope digital cover story. He can access his silly side with ease.

I asked Oldman about the upcoming HBO “Harry Potter” television series, a decade-spanning endeavor that will spend a season adapting each of J.K. Rowling’s seven fantasy books.

“I’ve seen a trailer for it, and I think it’s a great idea,” Oldman says. “They’re doing the whole book, which I love, because there were a lot of wonderful things, fabric and character detail, we had to lose for the sake of telling the story in two hours.”

Would Oldman be keen to don a distressed velvet overcoat again and participate in the reboot?

“I don’t think they want any of us from the movies contaminating or muddying the waters,” Oldman says, pleasantly. “Besides, I’m too old.”

But with AI, is anyone too old now? Oldman could drop into “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” and look like he hasn’t aged a day since the movie was released 22 years ago.

“I don’t know where we’re going with it because it seems to advance every week,” Oldman says. He ponders the advances made since Martin Scorsese used digital deaging in his 2019 film “The Irishman.”

“I think that was the least successful thing about it,” Oldman says of the technology, “and I’ve been a huge Martin Scorsese fan forever. Ultimately, I don’t know why they wanted to make [Robert] De Niro’s eyes blue.” He pauses, considering the change and why it bothered him. “I guess it’s a blue-eyed Irishman. If I had one negative takeaway, it would be that.”

Oldman prefers directors like Christopher Nolan, whom he worked with on the “Dark Knight” movies and “Oppenheimer,” who think technology should be used sparingly to enhance the storytelling.

“Otherwise it leaves me a bit cold,” he says. “You’re just looking at ones and zeroes.”

“I don’t want to be replaced entirely,” Oldman continues, shaking his head. “I don’t think anyone does.”

Read more coverage of ‘Slow Horses’

Gracie Cochrane won’t be enrolling in Hogwarts this fall.

HBO announced that Cochrane will depart the upcoming “Harry Potter” series ahead of Season 2. Cochrane played Ron Weasley’s (Alastair Stout) younger sister, Ginny, in “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.” Cochrane and her family attributed the “challenging decision” to “unforeseen circumstances.”

“Her time as part of the ‘Harry Potter’ world has been truly wonderful, and she is deeply grateful to [casting director] Lucy Bevan and the entire production team for creating such an unforgettable experience,” the Cochrane family said in a statement. “Gracie is very excited about the opportunities her future holds.”

HBO said they “wish Gracie and her family the best.”

“We support Gracie Cochrane and her family’s decision not to return for the next season of HBO’s ‘Harry Potter’ series, and we are grateful for her work on season one of the show,” HBO wrote in a statement.

Tristan Harland, Gabriel Harland, Ruari Spooner, Gracie Cochrane and Alastair Stout.

(HBO)

The HBO series was greenlit for a second season in early May, months ahead of its Christmas Day premiere later this year. If the sophomore season follows J.K. Rowling’s second book, “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” (the first season is adapted from the first novel), Ginny will begin her first year at Hogwarts in Season 2.

Cochrane was cast following a massive undertaking by HBO to find young actors for the show. HBO reviewed more than 32,000 auditions before selecting Dominic McLaughlin to play the boy who lived. The cast was filled out with West End performers, like Arabella Stanton (Hermione Granger), first-time actors like Amos Kitson (Dudley Dursley) and longtime stars including John Lithgow, who will play Albus Dumbledore.

HBO Chairman Casey Bloys explained that they expected a lot of “interest” in the cast because of the cultural prominence of the “Harry Potter” franchise.

“Interest can tip over into more unpleasant and aggressive behavior,” Bloys told Deadline, alluding to racist backlash over the casting of Paapa Essiedu as Professor Snape. “We talked to them about what to expect … but any kind of security that’s needed is an unfortunate aspect of doing IP shows. We just try to be mindful and monitor it.”

In March, HBO released its first trailer for the show, which included a peek at the redheaded Weasley family saying goodbye to Ron at Platform 9¾ before he boarded the Hogwarts Express. The trailer also teased Harry’s acceptance letter from Hogwarts and his wand and Nimbus broom.

A pivotal moment early in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” arrives when Harry’s suburban house is swarmed and flooded with letters of acceptance for the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry’s aunt and uncle have been preventing such dispatches from reaching the young wizard-to-be, but the boarding school’s messenger owls are having none of it.

Letters flood in from the fireplace, windows and nearly seem to cause the house to burst. And while watching the film recently at Inglewood’s Cosm, home to an all-encompassing high-definition spherical screen, I half expected a letter to fall upon my lap. Cosm specializes in sports, but has released three collaborations with Warner Bros. for what it deems “experiential film.” A framed screen displaying the original 2001 work from director Chris Columbus is untouched, but surrounding it are newly added digital animations designed to envelop guests.

And in this early “Sorcerer’s Stone” scene, letters were a-flying any which way I looked. Up, down, left and right — mail missives were rocketing toward the center screen. As the world closed in on Daniel Radcliffe’s Potter and family, it did so, too, at Cosm. I’ve seen Cosm’s take on “The Matrix” and “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” so I knew a letter wouldn’t come zapping my way, but one could be forgiven for protecting their cocktail — themed, of course — from being knocked over.

The famed “sorting hat” scene at Cosm’s interpretation of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”

(Cosm)

Such is the power of Cosm’s curved screen, which brings a sense of dimension, and even at times movement, to the film. Think of Cosm, perhaps, as a mini version of Las Vegas’ Sphere, but smaller doesn’t mean any less sweeping. No, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” in Cosm’s hands is often quite grand, as the first glimpse of Hogwarts Castle inspired cheers from the opening night audience, its cliffside towers, a romanticized spin on medieval architecture, towering above us in such a way that we will crane our necks. Only in Universal’s theme parks does the palace seem more real and welcoming.

“Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” arrives at Cosm during what is a big year for the franchise. It’s the 25th anniversary, of course, of the first film in the series, and later this year on Christmas Day a new television series based on author J.K. Rowling’s popular book series is set to premiere on HBO Max. This summer, Harry Potter: A Hogwarts Express Adventure will open at the Southern California Railway Museum for guests to experience the Wizarding World rite of passage aboard a real moving train in the Inland Empire.

All of this activity is happening as Rowling has become the center of heated debate for her controversial views on trans women. None of it, however, has seemed to curtail fan interest in the series. The 2023 video game “Hogwarts Legacy” became a massive hit despite calls for a boycott, and Universal Studios last year opened in Florida a brand new theme park land based upon the franchise at its Epic Universe park, with its centerpiece ride, Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry, often commanding some of the longest waits at the park.

At the film’s early May premiere at Cosm, Rowling was mentioned little, and wasn’t among the massive list of names being thanked by studio and Cosm execs. “Harry Potter” in 2026 is perhaps best viewed as a franchise that has outgrown its creator to take on a life of its own, and Cosm’s approach is that of a love letter to its many fans, recognizing that this is a magical, enchanting world that generations have long wished to find themselves immersed in.

A climatic scene in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” is outfitted with additional effects at Cosm.

(Cosm)

To that end, I’d rank “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” as the most successful of Cosm’s three cinematic interpretations. Certainly the subject matter plays a role, and while Cosm has been successful in matching the high-energy of “The Matrix” or the trippiness of “Willy Wonka,” here Cosm and its partners — experiential firm Little Cinema and effects house MakeMake — can simply luxuriate in atmosphere. The train to Hogwarts, for instance, is especially well done, seemingly stretched to infinity. The famed “sorting hat” scene, too, as Cosm’s wizards contrast the internal anxiety of being assigned a role with the external one of doing so in front of an audience, bringing to exaggerated life the cavernous Hogwarts assembly hall.

Cosm works best when it’s able to use its venue to create the illusion of no longer being a spectator, when the space itself starts to feel like a living theater. Feel this, for instance, when Harry and pals traverse the moving staircase. The frame of the screen may move, creating a slight sense of disorientation as the stairs themselves shift. The portraits on the wall, whose characters occasionally come alive, start to envelop us. Cosm used some restraint here, keeping us guessing as to which framed pictures may seek to speak or nod our way.

If there’s any qualm in Cosm’s work it’s that at times there could be a tinge more self-control in order to let the film do its work. Stepping into the hidden magic nook of London’s Diagon Alley is a showcase moment in Columbus’ film, and at times it is in Cosm’s interpretation as well. Out on the street, the shops circle around us, further conveying the cramped nature of the neighborhood. It feels, more than ever, like a real-life space. Inside an intimate pub, however, filling out the scene with empty tables could distract from the hurried, nervous nature of the filmmaker’s original intent.

But we live in an immersive age. Art, increasingly, is maximized to encompass us, and Cosm understands this moment well. Once again, the venue has made the argument that cinema can feel like communal, live entertainment.

STEPPING through the floo network into the Ministry Of Magic, I feel like I’ve been transported straight on to the Harry Potter film set.

The attention to detail is next-level, even down to the sheer size of the building I’m standing in.

Surrounded by green subway tiles, ginormous gold ornate statues of magical creatures and hanging banners featuring some of Azkaban’s Most Wanted, the magic really has come alive.

So much so that, as a huge Potter fan, I find myself choking back tears.

Feeling Epic

My friends and I are at Epic Universe, which opened in Orlando last year.

After exploring 1920s Paris, Fantastic-Beasts-style, we head to Nintendo World to ride on Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, where VR really does make me feel like I’ve been dropped into the game.

WAIL OF A TIME

I drove Irish Route 66 with deserted golden beaches and pirate-like islands

TEMPTED?

Tiny ‘Bali of Europe’ town with stunning beaches, €3 cocktails and £20 flights

Later, in the How To Train Your Dragon zone, Hiccup’s Wing Gliders is a super-fun coaster I want to ride again and again.

However, nothing quite hits the adrenalin high of Stardust Racers – a mega coaster in the park’s centre that reaches speeds of 62mph and heights of up to 133 feet, with spins and turns aplenty.

All this excitement leaves us needing a tipple, and the best place to take in the view of the park at night with a glass of pale rosé, £13, in hand, is Bar Helios at the top of the Helios Grand Hotel.

We’re staying a five-minute shuttle ride away at Terra Luna Resort, which also opened last year.

Designed in the colours of the solar system, my room features a spaceship-style window looking out on to Epic Universe.

Double rooms at Terra Luna start from £119 per night (Universalorlando.com).

Walt a ride

Orlando is, of course, also home to Walt Disney World, where each park brings its own adventure.

At Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, its new Zootopia: Better Zoogether! 4D film inside the Tree Of Life theatre entertains, and at EPCOT, I adore the thrills of “omnicoaster” Guardians Of The Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, before sipping champers, £16, in the recreation of Paris and tucking into fish and chips, £10.75, in the park’s nod to England.

No trip would be complete without visiting Magic Kingdom, home to the Cinderella Castle, and we’re soon flying around on motorbike rollercoaster Tron Lightcycle.

The new night-time parade, Disney Starlight: Dream The Night Away, makes the already dazzling performance even more breathtaking, too (Disneyworld.co.uk).

Meanwhile, stepping into our villa at Villatel Orlando Resort brings back MTV Cribs vibes.

Located on International Drive, these sleek, modern, self-catering pads can sleep up to 26, and all have private pools – many even have cinema rooms.

There’s a large resort swimming pool, too, with water slides and a lazy river, which I sit beside, sipping frozen margaritas, £12.60, as I dive into a good book.

Stays at Villatel Orlando Resort cost from £48 per person per night (Villatel.com/villatel-orlando-resort).

That’s mall, folks!

One evening, we visit nearby entertainment complex Activate Orlando at Pointe Orlando, where teams face physical and mental challenges using interactive technology.

My favourite is one which involves dipping and dodging a network of lasers.

Hour-long sessions cost £22 per person (Playactivate.com/pointe-orlando).

It proves great fun and leaves us ravenous.

Luckily, Palm Tree Club Orlando close by offers a party atmosphere alongside delicious Lavender Hugo Spritzes, £12, rigatoni smothered in a vodka sauce, £14.80, and sides of charred broccolini, £9.60, which are a fitting reward for our energetic endeavours (@Palmtreecluborlando).

Orlando’s huge shopping malls are almost as famous as the theme parks, and as Fabulous’ Fashion Editor, it would be remiss of me not to visit one.

I pick The Mall At Millenia, home to designer boutiques and US faves Pottery Barn, Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s (Mallatmillenia.com).

Yet I still end up buying a pair of boots from H&M for £35!

The real souvenir of my trip, however, is the magic feeling this city gave me, theme parks and all.