Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (also known as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the United States, India and the Philippines) is a 2001 fantasy film directed by Chris Columbus and written by Steve Kloves, based on the 1997 novel by J. K. Rowling. It is the first instalment in the Harry Potter film series, and stars Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, with Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley, and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger. The film follows Harry's first year at Hogwarts as he discovers that he is a famous wizard and begins his formal wizarding education.
Warner Bros. Pictures bought the film rights to the book in 1999 for a reported £1 million ($1.65 million). Production began in the United Kingdom in 2000, with Columbus being chosen to helm the film from a short list of directors that included Steven Spielberg and Rob Reiner. Rowling insisted that the entire cast be British and Irish, with the three leads chosen in August 2000 following open casting calls. Filming took place at Leavesden Film Studios and historic buildings around the United Kingdom from September 2000 to March 2001.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone premiered at Odeon Leicester Square in London on 4 November 2001 and was released on 16 November in the United Kingdom and the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures. It became a critical and commercial success, grossing $974 million at the box office during its initial run and over $1 billion with subsequent re-releases, against a $125 million budget. It became the highest-grossing film of 2001 and the second-highest-grossing film at the time. The film was nominated for several awards, including Academy Awards for Best Original Score, Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design. It was followed by seven sequels, beginning with Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in 2002 and ending with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 in 2011.
Plot
Orphaned as a baby, Harry Potter is entrusted to his only living relatives, the Dursley family that is not related to the wizarding world, by Professor Albus Dumbledore, Professor Minerva McGonagall, and key keeper Rubeus Hagrid from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Due to their hatred of the wizarding world, the Dursleys keep Harry unaware of magic until his eleventh birthday approaches, when their home is flooded with letters addressed to Harry, informing him he has been accepted to study magic at Hogwarts. As the Dursleys intercept the letters, Hagrid is sent to fetch Harry. Harry subsequently purchases school supplies with Hagrid at Diagon Alley, where he learns he is celebrated for surviving the dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who seemingly perished after murdering Harry's parents for working against him and left him with only a lightning bolt-shaped scar.
Harry journeys to Hogwarts aboard the Hogwarts Express, where he meets Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Upon arrival, the first-year students are sorted into four houses: Harry, Ron, and Hermione join Gryffindor, while the haughty Draco Malfoy goes to Slytherin, known for producing dark wizards. As they begin learning about magic and exploring Hogwarts, the three accidentally wander onto a forbidden corridor on the third floor, guarded by a giant three-headed dog named Fluffy; they subsequently question what it could be guarding. They also question how one would acquire a three-headed dog.
While Harry and Ron become friends, Hermione's studious ways ostracise her from the other students. On Halloween, Ron insults her and she retreats to the girls' toilets at the same time a mountain troll is found loose in the school. Harry and Ron rescue her from the troll and, when the teachers find them, Hermione takes the blame by saying she went looking for the troll, affirming the three's friendship; at the same time, Harry notices that the potions professor, Severus Snape, has sustained an injury. At his first flying lesson, Harry displays such impressive flying skills that McGonagall makes him Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team; during his first match, Ron and Hermione act when they see Snape appearing to jinx Harry's broomstick. Snape's actions lead Harry to suspect him of trying to get into the third-floor corridor, which Hagrid dismisses, unintentionally revealing Fluffy is guarding something known only to Dumbledore and Nicholas Flamel.
Harry and Ron spend Christmas together at Hogwarts, where Harry receives a Cloak of Invisibility and discovers the Mirror of Erised, which displays one's deepest desire. When Hermione returns, she informs the boys that Nicholas Flamel is the creator of the Philosopher's Stone, which can grant users immortality, and determines that this is what is being kept on the third floor. When Harry later encounters someone in the forest surrounding the school feeding on a unicorn, which the centaur Firenze informs him can keep a person alive, Harry deduces that it was Voldemort and that Snape wants to use the Philosopher's Stone to revive him.
When Dumbledore is summoned to London, the three suspect Snape will attempt to steal the stone and decide to stop him. They believed that he would use the stone to make sure that Voldemort would live forever as long as he had the stone. Sneaking onto the third floor, they get past Fluffy and face further defences of a strangling plant, flying keys, and a giant, enchanted chessboard, which leaves Ron incapacitated. Hermione tends to him, leaving Harry alone to confront the intruder, which turns out to be timid Professor Quirrell, whom Snape had been investigating all year while protecting Harry. Harry is granted the Stone by the final defence, the Mirror of Erised, by virtue of not desiring it. Quirrell reveals Voldemort's weakened form on the back of his head, and they attempt to persuade Harry to hand it over. When Harry refuses, Voldemort orders Quirrell to kill him, but Harry's touch incinerates Quirrell's body, from which Voldemort's soul escapes.
Harry wakes up in the hospital wing, where Dumbledore explains that the Stone has been destroyed, and that Harry has twice overcome Voldemort owing to his mother's sacrifice, which repels harmful magic through him. As the school year ends, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville Longbottom earn house points for their heroism, enabling Gryffindor to win the House Cup despite Slytherin's lead. As the summer nears, Harry is happy to have found a real home at Hogwarts.
Cast
Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter: An 11-year-old orphan living with his unwelcoming aunt, uncle, and cousin, who learns of his own fame as a wizard known to have survived his parents' murder at the hands of the dark wizard Lord Voldemort as an infant when he is accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Columbus had wanted Radcliffe for the role since he saw him in the BBC's production of David Copperfield before the open casting sessions had taken place but had been told by casting director Susan Figgis that Radcliffe's protective parents would not allow their son to take part in fear of him not going to have a normal childhood. Columbus explained that his persistence in giving Radcliffe the role was responsible for Figgis' resignation. Radcliffe was asked to audition in 2000 when Heyman and Kloves met him and his parents at a production of Stones in His Pockets in London. Heyman and Columbus successfully managed to convince Radcliffe's parents that their son would be protected from media intrusion. They agreed to let him play Harry. Rowling approved of Radcliffe's casting, stating that "having seen [his] screen test I don't think Chris Columbus could have found a better Harry." Radcliffe was reportedly paid £1 million for the film, although he felt the fee was "not that important" to him. The Saunders triplets appear as Harry as a baby. Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley: Harry's best friend at Hogwarts and a younger member of the Weasley wizarding family. A fan of the series, Grint decided he would be perfect for the part "because [he has] ginger hair". Having seen a Newsround report about the open casting he sent in a video of himself rapping about how he wished to receive the part. His attempt was successful as the casting team asked for a meeting with him. Emma Watson as Hermione Granger: Harry's other best friend and the trio's brains. Watson's Oxford theatre teacher passed her name on to the casting agents and she had to do over five interviews before she got the part. Watson took her audition seriously, but "never really thought [she] had any chance of getting the role." The producers were impressed by Watson's self-confidence and she outperformed the thousands of other girls who had applied. John Cleese as Nearly Headless Nick: The ghost of Gryffindor House. Robbie Coltrane as Rubeus Hagrid: A half-giant and Hogwarts' gamekeeper. Coltrane was one of the two actors Rowling wanted most, along with Smith as McGonagall. Coltrane, who was already a fan of the books, prepared for the role by discussing Hagrid's past and future with Rowling. Warwick Davis as Filius Flitwick: The Charms Master and head of Ravenclaw House. Davis also plays two other roles in the film: the Goblin Head Teller at Gringotts, and dubs the voice of Griphook, who is embodied by Verne Troyer. Richard Griffiths as Vernon Dursley: Harry's Muggle uncle. Richard Harris as Albus Dumbledore: Hogwarts' Headmaster and one of the most famous and powerful wizards of all time. Harris initially rejected the role, only to reverse his decision after his granddaughter stated she would never speak to him again if he did not take it. John Hurt as Mr. Ollivander: a highly regarded wandmaker and the owner of Ollivanders. Alan Rickman as Severus Snape: The Potions Master and head of Slytherin House. Fiona Shaw as Petunia Dursley: Harry's Muggle aunt. Maggie Smith as Minerva McGonagall: The Deputy Headmistress, head of Gryffindor and transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts. Smith was one of the two actors Rowling wanted most, along with Coltrane as Hagrid. Julie Walters as Molly Weasley: Mother of Ron Weasley. Ian Hart as Quirinus Quirrell: The stuttering Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts. Hart also voiced Lord Voldemort, while Richard Bremmer provided his physical appearance and portrayed him as a hooded figure during a flashback. Bonnie Wright as Ginny Weasley
Additionally, Zoë Wanamaker appears as Madame Hooch, Hogwarts' flying instructor and Quidditch referee; Tom Felton portrays Draco Malfoy, a student in Slytherin and Harry's rival. Harry Melling plays Dudley Dursley, Harry's Muggle cousin; and David Bradley appears as Argus Filch, Hogwarts' caretaker. Matthew Lewis, Devon Murray and Alfred Enoch portray Neville Longbottom, Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas respectively, three first year students in Gryffindor; James and Oliver Phelps play twins Fred and George Weasley, Ron's brothers, while Chris Rankin appears as his other brother Percy, a Gryffindor prefect,. Sean Biggerstaff portrays Oliver Wood, the Captain and Keeper of the Gryffindor Quidditch team; Jamie Waylett and Josh Herdman play Crabbe and Goyle, Malfoy's minions; and Leslie Phillips voices the Sorting Hat. Derek Deadman plays Tom, innkeeper of The Leaky Cauldron; and Elizabeth Spriggs appears as the Fat Lady, a painting at Hogwarts. Jean Southern plays dimpled woman on train.
Production Development