J.K. Rowling, the creator behind the universe of wizards, came in the way of Michael Jackson’s Harry Potter musical.
Although Michael Jackson untimely passed away, his legacy lives on in the hearts of all those he impacted. The legend created a huge fanbase with his genius and were he to live longer, he would have delivered the world with more of his talent. Nevertheless, while Michael Jackson was still alive he could not bring one of his most ardent dreams to fruition: a Harry Potter musical.
HIGHLIGHTS —
- The musical that never happened.
- The downfall of J.K. Rowling.
THE ROAD NEVER TAKEN
The stories of Harry Potter and the wizarding world he inhabited have been milked by Warner Bros. to the best of their abilities. Despite the capitalism that mires Harry Potter, fans have loved all Harry Potter products offered to them. From films to merchandise and theme parks, potterheads have left no stone unturned in showering their love on the wizarding world. One can also say potterheads single handedly invented fan fiction by the way of Tumblr and Wattpad.
However, potterheads missed out on a golden opportunity, all thanks to the woman to whom they owe it all. The author of Harry Potter was pitched a Harry Potter musical by none other than one of the biggest musical geniuses of this planet and she turned him down. Cutting to the chase, J.K. Rowling rejected Michael Jackson when he proposed the idea of a Harry Potter musical.
In a conversation with Oprah Winfrey, the author was quizzed about the capital milking of her books. Oprah had asked Rowling,
“Were you reluctant to increase the empire? Meaning the theme parks, the doll figures. I mean, there is an entire Potter universe. Anything you can imagine in the world, it’s been Potterized.”
J.K. Rowling had quite a surprising reply to this as she revealed this is the best case scenario and the point where she draws the line on the expansion of Harry Potter’s universe. The writer replied,
“I can only say to you, it could be so much worse. Michael Jackson wanted to do the musical. I said no to a lot of things. I have a say. For me I love the films, I love the books, and there are elements that are really fun around it.”
Harry Potter and Michael Jackson are two pieces of art that have invited adulation from all across the globe. The crossover between the two could have been brilliant, but we would never know. Had there been Twitter lobbies in those days, perhaps, Potterheads could have advocated for #HarryPotterTheMusical and put enough pressure on J.K. Rowling to take back her rejection of Michael Jackson. Alas, that never happened.
J.K. ROWLING IN AZKABAN
There’s a place that J.K. Rowling created for all the bad wizarding people in Harry Potter, or as popularly known, Azkaban. This prison for the wizarding villains was a subject of eerie vibes throughout the stories. However, J.K. Rowling probably never anticipated that she could herself get banished to the real world Azkaban, meaning that she could get cancelled and sent to the world where people are shamed for their wrongdoings eternally without any hope of forgiveness.
Maybe the anger against her started bubbling with the Tony-winning play ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’ that is considered canon in the Harry Potter stories but was not received well by the fans. This could be the starting point when she began to rekindle a story that did not need any developments. However, the last straw proved to be not her work at all but her views.
J.K. Rowling had publicly questioned the idea of transness, subsequently, incensing her LGBTQ+ fans. This led to her transition from J.K. Rowling, the celebrated author to J.K. Rowling, the apathetic, privileged white woman. In a way, J.K. Rowling rejecting Michael Jackson for a Harry Potter Musical wasn’t her only mistake. She should have carefully and sensitively chosen a worldview that aligns with the ever-evolving socio-political and cultural landscape.
Anyhow, J.K. Rowling has cancelled and there’s no way Twitter will resurrect her back. So tell us in the comments if you would have looked forward to a Harry Potter musical composed and staged by Michael Jackson?
