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CNN Live At Daybreak

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" Hits Silver Screen Tomorrow

Aired November 15, 2001 - 07:52   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Witches and wizards hope to cast a spell on moviegoers across the country over the weekend. "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" hits the silver screen tomorrow.

("HARRY POTTER" PREVIEW MOVIE CLIP)

ZAHN: And the man who brings to life the mystery and magic of the popular "Harry Potter" book joins me this morning, director and executive producer, Chris Columbus -- welcome.

CHRIS COLUMBUS, DIRECTOR AND EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Thank you.

ZAHN: You didn't look too scared watching that. That's probably the 100th time you've seen that scene.

COLUMBUS: Probably about the 500th time, yes.

ZAHN: How odd is it to be out there talking about this film in this post-September 11 environment, at a time when your industry is really analyzing, perhaps, the changing tastes of the American public? What does the American public want to see?

COLUMBUS: Well, you can't be presumptuous enough to think you might know what they want to see. You certainly can be responsible. September 11 was very, obviously a very touching time for all of us, and for me, it was devastating. So I can't compare -- I lived in New York for 17 years, and I consider it my hometown. So you can't really compare Hollywood to what happened. It's still just a movie.

I think what Hollywood does best is, for two hours if you can help people forget about what happened for a while, it's great. And I think we have to be responsible. As filmmakers, we have to be responsible about the types of films that we do, so I think we just have to be more aware about what's going on in the outside world.

ZAHN: Well, folks who go to see this movie this weekend are certainly going to get an escape, and I know one of the challenges you had was in remaining faithful to Ms. Rowling's books. And was that your guiding force?

COLUMBUS: Yes, I mean, obviously there was a bit of an audition process, when I did this film, and when I first met...

ZAHN: This is an amazing scene.

COLUMBUS: Oh, this sequence...

ZAHN: Does this track with the book?

COLUMBUS: For the most part, yes. Yes, it's pretty faithful, a few changes here and there.

ZAHN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) for us, this chess match.

COLUMBUS: The chess match, for me, is probably my most favorite scene in the film, because it brings together all of the themes of the book, you know, bravery, courage, loyalty and sacrifice. And Ron Weasley in this particular scene, that's Ron right there, has to sacrifice himself so his friends can move forward to actually save the school. So it really is about good overcoming evil in this sequence. That's all (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

ZAHN: How much input did you have from J.K. Rowling?

COLUMBUS: It was an amazing amount of input. When I first met her, I said the thing I want to do is shoot this film in England, use an all British cast, and be as faithful to the book as possible. And she said, well, you obviously want to make the same type of film that I do. I invited her along to collaborate, and she never sort of stood over us with a big stick saying, you cannot do this. It was a complete collaboration, which was wonderful.

ZAHN: This is a great scene, when some of the students at Hogsworth get to practice...

COLUMBUS: Levitation.

ZAHN: ... levitation for the first time.

COLUMBUS: I like this scene, and I like this. The thing that makes these books work are the characters. Hermoine Granger is a strong woman character, you know, and she takes charge here.

ZAHN: Teacher's pet, though, Chris.

COLUMBUS: Teacher's pet, but still strong, and for that reason, she's one of my favorite characters in the book.

ZAHN: And what I find fascinating is you know, and we have this on the bottom of the screen, 100 million copies of this book have been sold.

COLUMBUS: Yes.

ZAHN: It's been translated in 46 languages.

COLUMBUS: Yes.

ZAHN: Now, was there something you had to keep in mind as you were producing this, knowing that you're going to have subtitles and X number of languages as the film rolls out across the world.

COLUMBUS: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) a book creates a language of its own. There are muggles and the quidditch match and bludgers (ph) and all of these things that we're not familiar with, unless you've read the book. So we had to make the movie accessible to nonreaders as well. That's what happened in the films. When we created the film, people who haven't read the books loved the movie and want to go out and buy the books, which is terrific.

ZAHN: Now, that's going to make you feel good. Anything to get American children to read...

COLUMBUS: It's fantastic.

ZAHN: ... is a very positive development. Chris Columbus, congratulations.

COLUMBUS: Thanks, Paula.

ZAHN: Good luck this weekend.

COLUMBUS: Thank you very much.

ZAHN: We'll be interested to look at those box office totals on Monday morning.

COLUMBUS: Thank you, Paula.

(CROSSTALK)

ZAHN: You're feeling pretty good about it, though, aren't you?

COLUMBUS: Yes, I don't want to get obsessed with it, but I am feeling great about it, yes, because I know the movie works. People love the movie, which is great.

ZAHN: Well, good luck.

COLUMBUS: Thanks, Paula.

ZAHN: Five thumbs up in our household.

COLUMBUS: Great!

ZAHN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE). I have spoken with two of the young stars from "Harry Potter," and you'll meet them a little later on this morning.

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