November 21st: the Day “Half-Blood Prince” Almost Hit Theaters

It was August 4th, 2006 when we learned Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince‘s November 21st, 2008 release date. Looking back at the comments our visitors wrote, most were confused about why Warner Brothers set a release date so early. Especially since we didn’t even know the director.

I decided to ask David Heyman about it when I visited the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix set in September ’06. He told us that the release date was set early for planning purposes – it was as simple as that.

Two years and ten days after the original release date was announced, Warner Brothers decided that the film would be delayed until July 17th, 2009. Fans were devastated, and WB stated that the delay was to ensure they had a big film in Summer ’09. Many speculated that WB’s The Dark Knight had done so well that the additional money made from Half-Blood Prince would not be needed this year.

So, here we are today with a somewhat surreal realization that all of us would be seeing Half-Blood Prince today if it weren’t for the delay. Luckily, Warner Brothers has given us a cool little gift: today’s opening of Twilight includes the latest (and in most people’s opinion: greatest) Half-Blood Prince trailer. Only 237 days until Half-Blood Prince!

Update: E! Online released an article last night stating that despite Half-Blood Prince delayed release, Potter fans are still not over it.