Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Alfonso Cuaron, ...
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

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The moment Radcliffe decided to give Cuarón his full trust came during a scene where Harry vows to kill Sirius Black (Gary Oldman) for betraying his parents. It was the first of many bleak moments that bumped up against Radcliffe's limited experience. Music, like Radiohead or the Scottish band the Delgados, helped him get in a funk. As for memories, ''I had a dog die two or three years ago. Nothing like having your mother get killed, but that's all I got.'' So he asked his director for advice. In the past, when Radcliffe asked Columbus for help, he usually got instruction on effective facial expressions. Cuarón talked him through it -- then challenged his star to figure it out for himself. ''I'll forever be in his debt,'' says Radcliffe. ''It basically affected the way I approached everything after that.''

Beyond ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,'' currently shooting with director Mike Newell -- Cuarón was asked to return but was so spent after ''Azkaban'' he declined -- the future is cloudy. The franchise's screenwriter Steve Kloves may not return, and there's uncertainty with the kids, too. Where once Warner Bros. seemed willing to replace them the second they outgrew their roles or puberty hit them with an ugly stick, the studio now seems eager to keep the trio intact; it realizes that an identification has been made. According to one source, Warner Bros. president Alan Horn even made a personal appeal to Watson to return for ''Goblet.'' All are taking it one film at a time, but Watson is said to be the one who deliberates the most carefully. ''It's only just now hit me how big this is. I don't know why,'' says Watson. ''Sometimes, it's flattering. Other times, it's [big sigh].''

(This is an online-only excerpt from Entertainment Weekly's June 11, 2004, issue.)

Originally posted Jun 01, 2004 Published in issue #769 Jun 11, 2004 Order article reprints
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