The first day of the new year started out with a much-anticipated reunion special for Harry Potter fans. Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts aired on HBO Max on January 1, much to the eager delight of its devoted fan base.
Harry Potter first made his debut into the world in the book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, which was released in June 1997, and was an immediately acclaimed bestseller. Six more books were released, along with a total of eight films, and the literacy and film worlds were forever changed.
The young, orphaned wizard-in-training, his classmates, his friends, and his powers were a huge hit with a massive amount of fans ranging in ages old and young that even today is still going strong and continues to expand to this day.
Many fans were excited to tune in to the reunion special to find out even more about this magical universe that changed the lives of so many.
But there was one small detail that was called out by one superfan: a photo of Emma Roberts instead of Emma Watson, who played Hermione Granger in the iconic series, aired right at the beginning of the reunion special.
Here’s what happened
The nearly two-hour reunion was jam-packed with interviews, memories, and nostalgia from the cast and crew, including childhood photos of the cast members. It was there that one sharp-eyed viewer noticed that something looked like it wasn’t quite right with one of the photos and took it to social media:
Sure enough, that’s a young Emma Roberts sporting those Mickey Mouse ears at that breakfast table, not Hogwarts heroine Emma Watson. Back in 2012, Roberts shared that same throwback photo on her Instagram account:
What happened next?
Neither Roberts nor Watson has publicly commented on the photo snafu since it happened, but after it was posted on Twitter, the producers of the reunion special noticed it and aired the following brief statement:
“Well spotted, Harry Potter fans! You brought an editing mistake of a mislabeled photograph to our attention. New version up shortly.”
Emma Watson also took a minute to share her own throwback photo on her Instagram account after the special aired:
Emma Roberts, meanwhile, is best known for her roles in Scream Queens and American Horror Story. Since wrapping up the Harry Potter films in 2011, Emma Watson has gone on to star in movies such as The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Little Women, and Beauty and the Beast.
No new details have been released on how the producers intend to revise the reunion or when it might be released.
Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts is currently airing on HBO Max, HBO Go, and Hulu’s HBO Max.