Why Steven Spielberg said no to Harry Potter

Here’s a bit of that classic 'what could have been' cinema history for you: Steven Spielberg, of all people, was once lined up to direct the first Harry Potter film. Yes, really—imagine that for a moment. Spielberg with Hogwarts. Anyway, this nearly happened, but didn’t, for a rather unexpected reason he’s only just talked about while promoting his new flick, Disclosure Day. Let’s get into how it all played out.

Spielberg, Potter, and a Massive Fork in the Road

If you’ve followed film industry rumblings from the early 2000s, you might've heard whispers about Spielberg almost grabbing the reins for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone before Chris Columbus ended up with the job. This week, while chatting with TCM about his upcoming sci-fi film, Disclosure Day, Spielberg decided to explain, in detail, how close he came and why he chose not to pull the trigger.

'After his death, I was at the funeral at his home. Christiane [Kubrick] and Jan Harlan, her brother, approached me about taking over from Stanley, as Stanley had intended, and directing the movie,' Spielberg said. 'I actually walked away from Harry Potter, which I was scheduled to direct as my next movie.'

So, long story short, he stepped aside from Hogwarts because of a promise to Stanley Kubrick—and Kubrick’s family. Kubrick had wanted Spielberg to finish A.I. Artificial Intelligence in his stead. Next thing you know, Spielberg’s at Kubrick’s funeral and being asked, in person, to pick up that particular torch. He did, meaning he waved goodbye to Harry Potter and dived straight into AI instead.

It’s not as if Spielberg was clueless about what he was leaving on the table. He knew J.K. Rowling’s series was already a global phenomenon—box office gold, as far as these things go. ‘I gave that up to essentially do AI,’ he explained. Just for reference, both A.I. Artificial Intelligence and the first Harry Potter film (Chris Columbus’s version) hit cinemas in 2001. Now there’s a historical near-miss if ever there was one.

What’s This New Spielberg Project?

If you’re wondering why Spielberg’s opening up about this now, it’s because he’s currently doing the rounds for his new film, Disclosure Day—a proper Spielbergian sci-fi yarn about aliens. The cast is looking pretty sharp, too. Here’s who’s in it:

• Emily Blunt (leading)
• Josh O’Connor
• Colin Firth
• Colman Domingo
• Eve Hewson
• Wyatt Russell
• McKenna Bridger
• Elizabeth Marvel
• Elliot Villar
• Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Disclosure Day lands in UK cinemas (and everywhere else) on 12 June, 2026. Early word on the street, at least on Rotten Tomatoes, is that critics are giving it full marks. So, even though the man didn’t end up directing Harry and co., he’s not exactly kicking his heels.