This ‘Harry Potter’ Prequel Breathes New Life Into James Potter And Severus Snape’s Backstory

By: Cavan SieczkowskiDeputy Director, News & Analytics

What if fans were able to decide the direction of the next “Harry Potter” installment? 

That’s exactly what happened when Broad Strokes Productions used the Facebook account Harry Potter Untold Tales to do some crowdsourcing and find what people who love the magical series hoped to see next. 

“I did a poll on our Facebook page with a few story options, and it was almost unanimous that the fans wanted a story about the Marauders,” director Justin Zagri told BuzzFeed. “So, I read the books again, did some research, and came up with a story that I feel had something to say, while making sure we got to know both Snape and the Marauders when they were transitioning into adults, and how events of their past helped shape their future.”

Thus was born “Severus Snape and the Marauders,” a 25-minute short film released March 1 that takes place in 1978, right after James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew — the four Gryffindors otherwise known as the Marauders — Severus Snape and Lily Evans graduate from Hogwarts. What unfolds focuses on James and his rival Snape. 

“The response has been really passionate, but for the past 24 hours it has exploded and we’re all kind of overwhelmed by it,” Zagri told The Huffington Post in an email Friday. “The idea behind this was I wanted to tell a story that showed teenagers [who] were maturing into adults that culminated in a single moment that really changed these characters. For better or worse.” 

Zagri was also behind the 2013 “Harry Potter”-inspired short film “The Greater Good.”