Mobs of dedicated fans swarmed around the entrance of Union Landing Movie Theater at 11:45 pm as they say goodbye to Harry Potter with a $168 million bang.
Cardboard cutouts of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry brought the film’s magical theme to Union City’s theater. Harry Potter look-alikes with the acclaimed lightning bolt scar sketched on their foreheads waved their replica wands in excitement, as they soon would witness the end of an entertainment era.
The final installment of a tale of an orphan boy-wizard with a predetermined destiny to destroy his arch nemesis, the evil Lord Voldemort, met an end on July 15. Die-hard fans of all ages wearing an assortment of Harry Potter memorabilia gathered together to bid the Harry Potter generation adieu.
Union City police officers surrounded the movie theater, controlling the excited crowd of Harry Potter enthusiasts.
All of the Century 25 theaters featured Harry Potter and his magical friends on the silver screen, 14 of which were sold-out.
Fans in the crowd expressed their anticipation for the “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2” public premiere by chanting, “It ends here,” the ominous slogan featured on every decorated movie billboard since the release of the first installment of “The Deathly Hallows” in November 2010.
22-year-old fan Nicole Pitts said she has become invested in the boy with the lightening bolt scar. For Pitts, the Potter nation has grown to be more than simply a film or a book series.
“[Harry Potter] has meant a lot to me,” she said. “It has brought out the little kid in me again. Being able to escape from everyday life into a world full of magic has been great.”
The Harry Potter empire commenced in 1999 with the release of author J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”
Little did Rowling know—she said at a recent press release—that her books would go on to highly impact a generation of pop-culture.
The final installment of the Harry Potter series earned $43.5 million from midnight screenings alone and grossed an estimated $168.6 million during its opening weekend, according to a recent article released by The Wall Street Journal.
The final Potter film stole the spotlight from DC Comics’ “The Dark Night,” securing the top spot of the biggest opening weekends of all time by nearly $10 million.
“It’s no surprise to me that the final film beat out ‘The Dark Knight,’” said dedicated Potter fan Frida Li. “Fans have been anticipating the end for over 14 years now.”
Fans say they have formed emotional ties with the series.
“I used to read the Harry Potter books to my kids at bed time,” said Daniel LaMount. “My kids are now entering college. They’ve grown up with this series.”
More than simply a film series, the Harry Potter empire has grossed nearly $20 billion over a 14-year span.
The book series sold an approximated 450 million copies, making the once homeless Rowling the first and only billionaire author, according to Forbes.
Despite the conclusion of the magical Potter film series, Rowling announced in a recent press release that she has plans to continue the enchanted world of Harry Potter with an interactive website called “Pottermore,” which will allow followers to journey through the storylines of the books.
Though loyal Potter fans are sad to bid the series farewell, anti-Potter critics have celebrated the conclusion of the wizardry world. The Potter series has witnessed its share of controversy, the majority stemming from religious groups and parents.
“I brought my son up in a Christian home and taught him the Christian values,” said parent Anne Lincomb. “The satanic witchcraft that the series teaches is a bad influence on America’s youth.”
Though at times the series has been the source of controversy, it is hard to deny that Rowling’s series has impacted society.
“I’m both happy and sad that the Harry Potter era has finally came to an end,” said Pitts. “J.K. Rowling created a story that was accepted by all ages and that is hard to come by.”
