Magic Necklace
It’s not till pretty far into the story of Prisoner of Azkaban that Hermione reveals the truth of how she’s been getting to all of her classes—with the use of the magical Time-Turner that she hides on a necklace beneath her robes.
But if you look very closely, you can actually spot her necklace in this very early scene! Although it’s not till much later that we learn what it is.
He Who Must Not Be Hugged
Who can forget the impossibly awkward and cringe hug between Draco Malfoy and Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2? Certainly not us! But did you know, not everyone realizes that part of the reason this was so awkward was that it wasn’t planned in the script at all.
That’s right—Ralph Fiennes just ad-libbed and decided to hug Tom Felton on the spot! So cringe in the best way.
Art for Art’s Sake
We all love Dawn French’s performance as the Fat Lady, the inimitable figure in the portrait hole that leads to the entrance to Gryffindor Tower. But what you might not have noticed, is the portrait hanging right next to her!
Because this isn’t merely just a piece of filler—it’s actually art depicting some real people! In fact, this woman and baby are no less than the wife and daughter of director Alfonso Cuarón.
In His Shoes
When Harry and Dumbledore travel to Slughorn’s house at the beginning of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, he tries to evade their attempts to lure him back into teaching, but disguises himself as an armchair. As you do.
But only eagle-eyed fans and viewers will be able to notice a key clue that this sofa is actually a person—because Slughorn’s shoes are still visible!
In the Family
Did you ever notice this random wizard at Hogwarts before? What’s he doing there next to Lee Jordan? Very random and we have no idea what character he is supposed to be—just an unnamed person watching Quidditch.
But what you might not know, is that this seemingly random extra is a key member of the Potter family in real life. Because this actor is Nigel Anstey—and he’s Tom Felton’s real-life grandpa!
Scar Tissue
One of our favorite parts of the entire movie saga is the epilogue, where we see the wizards all grown up and living wholesome lives, a world away from the drama that they lived through as children.
And if you look closely, you’ll see that grown-up Harry’s scar is much less noticeable. This is a direct nod to the final line in the book: “The scar had not pained Harry for 19 years. All was well.” Sob!
Handle With Care
There’s no shortage of things to be creeped out by when it comes to Ralph Fiennes’ portrayal of Lord Voldemort. But have you ever noticed how he manages to hold his wand so super lightly, adding to the sort of snake-like effect of his creepy demeanor?
If you look closely, you’ll see that the movie creators added a little hook—Fiennes himself requested this, so he could handle the wand that bit more lightly.
Protect Your Valuables
This behind-the-scenes nugget is extra valuable because it shows that not only does Hermione always understand more than we do, but that the producers of the movie also understand her character inside out.
Because you may not notice that in Chamber of Secrets, just as Lockhart releases the pixies, she throws her books onto the table. This is because she knows the pixies will destroy everything—and because the producers know how much she loves books.
If Looks Could Kill
Remember when Snape just seemed like a straight-up baddie out to kill Harry by any means possible? Well if you look back at all the Snape-is-evil signs, they’re not just red herrings.
Take this for example – when Harry’s scar burns after Snape looks right at him, it’s not a coincidence. Because who else is in shot? The back of Quirrel’s head! And who is the back of Quirrell’s head in the first movie? That’s right – VOLDEMORT!
Common People
One thing that’s not really appreciated enough about the Harry Potter movie franchise is the music. And we’re not just talking about the powerful score, but also the special musical guests!
Remember the wacky and wonderful band the Weird Sisters? Well, if you look closely, you’ll see they’re made up of some of the most beloved and eccentric musicians of the time such as Jarvis Cocker from Pulp.
A Free Elf
Of course, no one can forget the lovable character of Dobby, especially not his heartbreaking death when he throws himself into the line of fire to protect Harry. Sob!
But what you probably don’t remember is that prior to this, Harry made him agree to promise “never to try to save my life again”. If he had kept that promise, he might still be alive today!
Spot the Difference
One of the running gags throughout the entire series is how impossible it is to tell identical twins Fred and George Weasley apart. So much so that, even their own mother struggles sometimes!
And in their first scene in Sorcerer’s Stone, the two of them tease her by pretending to be the other one. But if you look closely, you’ll know which is which as they have their initials printed on their trunks.
Too Close for Comfort
Remember towards the end of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, when Ginny reveals that her older brother Percy has a secret girlfriend, Penelope Clearwater? In the book, there are of course signs, when we see how upset Percy is when Penelope is attacked.
But in the movie, there’s another sign—when Nearly Headless Nick runs into the two of them holding hands!
What’s in a Name
We know that J. K. Rowling is a fan of hidden meanings, especially when it comes to choosing the names of her characters. But what you may not have noticed is that Professor Slughorn’s wand is a reflection of his name!
Because look closely and you’ll see that the handle of his wand is in the shape of a slug. Pretty amazing attention to detail there.
Little Boxes
We know that the Dursleys pride themselves on being perfectly normal, thank you very much. But one particular brilliant example of them just being the same as everyone else, as much as possible, might have gone over your heads.
Because look closely at the cars parked in the driveways at Privet Drive—they are all exactly the same! Pretty perfect for all of those characters.
Signed and Delivered
We all remember when Draco sent Harry a note, almost threatening him with a violent end to their next quidditch game. But did you ever see the small detail in the bottom corner?
It turns out Draco was so impressed by his own doodling and creativity that he simply had to sign his name at the bottom. That way, there’s no questioning where it came from. What a bully.
Planting Weeds
The producers of the Harry Potter movies are pretty amazing at planting little clues that turn out to be incredibly important later. Because early on in the movie Goblet of Fire, we see Neville Longbottom reading a book as he walks along near Harry and Ron.
And of course, later on it’s this book that has given him the information he needs to help Harry with the second task! It’s just so much attention to detail.
Soothing Sounds
Remember the beautiful harp they use to put the terrifying Fluffy to sleep in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone? You probably thought that was the final and only time it featured, right?
Wrong! The harp actually shows up again all the way in Half-Blood Prince, when Harry and Ginny steal into the Room of Requirement to try to get rid of it. It’s right next to the Vanishing Cabinet.
Muggle Pics
Isn’t it cool how wizarding photos always move around like the photos themselves are alive? Well, this tiny detail may have escaped you in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, when a muggle family appears in the Daily Prophet.
Did you notice that this one photo happens to not move at all? It’s of course because it’s a muggle photo, not a wizard photo—even though it’s appearing in a wizard newspaper.
Leaky Signage
What we love about Diagon Alley and all associated shops, is that they are magically hidden from muggle view and only visible to those people with magic in them.
But you probably didn’t notice the attention to detail in Harry Potter and the Sorceror’s Stone when Harry and Hagrid walk up to the sign for The Leaky Cauldron – and it springs from a blank sign to reveal itself only to them.
Secret Talent
One of the best and most memorable parts of the movie series is when Harry Potter discovers his natural ability for Quidditch and Professor McGonagall signs him up for the house team.
But even the most eagle-eyed fans may not have noticed that the Quidditch trophy display not only shows James Potter, Harry’s father—but next to it is someone else, a certain M. G. McGonagall! Is that our same beloved teacher? Who knows!
Forget Me Not
Remember early on in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, when Neville receives his Remembrall? It shows clearly that he’s forgotten something, but he can’t remember what!
But if you look closely, you’ll see that everyone around Neville is wearing their wizarding robes, and he is just wearing his regular sweater. Perhaps that’s what he forgot! Of course, the Remembrall ends up being super important later on, but this one is way more subtle.
Fantastic Marauders
Of course, as well as the Harry Potter books and movies themselves, there are a host of successful spin-offs, such as Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. This book and its author Newt Scamander are mentioned several times in canon, but we bet you missed this one!
Because in Prisoner of Azkaban, when we are first introduced to the Marauder’s Map, you can actually see Newt walking around Hogwarts. We wondered what he was doing there!
Hidden Message
We all remember the amazing and heartbreaking moment when Harry discovers the Mirror of Erised. At first, he thinks he’s found a window to his dearly departed parents and family, but later we learn it’s just showing him his deepest desire.
But not everyone realizes that the magical lettering on the top of the mirror actually means something! It looks like nonsense, but actually it reads “I show not your face but your heart’s desire”—just backward!
Cut-Off Curse
One of our favorite parts of the movie Chamber of Secrets is when Harry tricks Lucius Malfoy into accidentally freeing his downtrodden house elf, Dobby. When Malfoy realizes what’s happened, he’s so annoyed that he tries to curse Harry, but Dobby interrupts him.
But only the sharpest of viewers will notice that the curse he shouts begins with “avada”—aka Avada Kedavra, the killing curse! He tries to kill him! OMG.
Bridge of Wonder
As the Harry Potter series goes on, it gets a lot darker and scarier. Part of that is how Voldemort’s influence and all the evil things start spilling out of the wizarding world and affecting muggles too—like when London’s Millennium Bridge is destroyed by the Death Eaters.
But didn’t anyone notice that the series is set back in the 1990s and the Millennium Bridge was only built in the year 2000?! Whoops.
Bookcase of Secrets
Remember in Chamber of Secrets when Harry tries traveling using Floo Powder for the first time? He gets a bit in his mouth, coughs, and ends up spluttering over his words when saying the destination.
This accidentally sends him to Knockturn Alley, the dark magic wizarding shopping street. There are all sorts of weird things on sale there, but you may not have noticed that there’s a window display, showing none other than the Harry Potter books themselves!
Misspelled Marauder
One of our favorite things from the entire Harry Potter universe is of course the Marauder’s Map. And readers of the book will know exactly who its creators—Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs—really are.
But even the most eagle-eyed fans would not notice this deliberate mistake—the map misspells Moony as Mooney! This is a nod to Karl Mooney, the visual effects supervisor.
Dragon Friendly
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire of course contains many of the series’ most memorable scenes, especially Harry battling a dragon. And we do see a lot of dragon action, as well as a lot of magical creatures being locked up in cages.
But only the most eagle-eyed viewers—ones who watch to the end of the credits—will notice that they add in the line “No dragons were harmed in the making of this movie”. Hilarious!
Whole Grain Wizards
One of the best things about being at Hogwarts, aside from the extensive and amazing magical education, is of course… the food! Who hasn’t drooled over watching the lavish feasts in the Hogwarts Great Hall?
But what we love even more than those great banquets is the hilarious wizarding breakfast foods. Did you ever notice the box of “Cheeri-Owls” on the table in Order of the Phoenix? Once you see it, you can’t unsee it!
Magical Keys
Another super charming and iconic thing about the Harry Potter series is just how quintessentially British it is. This includes things like red telephone boxes, which of course is one of the ways wizards can enter the Ministry of Magic.
But did you notice that when Mr. Weasley dials the magic number on the phone pad to enter, he presses 62442? That spells MAGIC on the keypad! Such attention to detail.
Lucky Number Seven
We know that when Harry takes his spot on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, he is given the shirt with the number 7 on it. At first, this seems cool because we learn throughout the series that 7 is the most powerfully magical number.
But then later on it gets dark… when we of course learn that Harry is Voldemort’s seventh Horcrux. Chills!
Lockhart’s Locks
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets features one of the funniest and also most tragic characters, the ill-fated and big-egoed Gilderoy Lockhart. In the books, he’s super self-obsessed and in the movies he’s even worse.
But the movie creators took it one step further, and if you look super closely, you’ll see that Lockhart has a wig on his desk. Meaning that he is actually bald! Hilarious.
Muggle Matters
As the series progresses, we see more blurring of the lines between the wizarding and muggle worlds, as a sign of the increasingly dangerous situation becoming a worldwide issue.
And one great nod to this is seen in Prisoner of Azkabanwhen Harry runs away and takes refuge in the Leaky Cauldron. Did you ever notice one of the punters is reading a book? And it’s none other than the muggle classic, Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time.
Precious Metals
We know that Horace Slughorn is super concerned with materialistic things, as shown by how he loves expensive gifts and he basically bribes for friendship within his exclusive Slug Club.
And this is actually reflected in his wand, which is encased with super luxurious gold and black. As we know, the wand chooses the wizard, so this really says a lot about him.
French Boogie
During the fourth movie, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, we see visiting students from other wizarding schools around the world. One of these is of course Beauxbatons, filled with beautiful and sophisticated French students.
But did you ever notice when these lovely ladies burst into dancing before the first task, and their moves are very reminiscent of… the Macarena?! It’s such a random, but brilliant touch.
Future Moves
Remember early on in Sorcerer’s Stone, when Ron teaches Harry how to play wizard’s chess? Harry is shocked by how violent and rough the movements are. It seems like a pretty innocent bit of world-building, but it’s actually really important foreshadowing.
Because when they are faced with the challenges to get the Stone at the end of the movie, it’s Ron who has to take the hit in a life-size and very violent version of the game.
Hallowed Sign
We all learn in the final installments, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows parts 1 and 2, the importance and significance of what the deathly hallows actually are. But of course, these clues are laid out for us much earlier on.
But we are not talking about Harry’s invisibility cloak—we mean the actual emblem of the Hallows. This can be seen as early as Goblet of Fire, in the background of Dumbledore’s office!
Mic Mess-Up
One of the most exciting and enjoyable parts of the Harry Potter movie franchise is you can just totally lose yourself in the fantasy world and escape reality for many enjoyable hours.
And that’s why eagle-eyed fans would probably be surprised and disappointed to notice the strange lumps on Harry and Hermione’s backs towards the end of Prisoner of Azkaban. Because these are actually the actors’ mics! Talk about being brought back to reality.
