HBO’s ‘Harry Potter’ Needs More Room: Warner Bros. Seeks Approval for Another Leavesden Sound Stage
Even a castle with moving staircases can run short on space.
Warner Bros. has applied for planning permission for an extra sound stage at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, the studio complex in Hertfordshire, England, where HBO’s Harry Potter series is filmed. Local newspaper the Watford Observer reports that the application to Three Rivers District Council is retrospective, the UK planning term for seeking approval for work that has already started or been completed.
What the Application Says
According to the report, the studio and Plum Jam Productions, the Warner Bros. company making the series, say the stage on the south-western edge of the site is needed “to meet the production’s current 10-year filming commitments.”
The application also points to demand for Leavesden’s space rising sharply since the studios opened in 2012, driven by streaming services making their own films and TV, and says the forthcoming merger with Paramount will only add to it.
It isn’t the only building work at Leavesden. The Watford Observer notes the studio is in the middle of a wider expansion meant to increase capacity by 50 per cent by 2027. The council has until December 4, 2026 to decide on the new application.
A quick note on what we don’t know: the report doesn’t give the stage’s size or say which sets it will hold.
Where things stand:
- Premiere: Season 1, based on Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, debuts December 25, 2026 on HBO and HBO Max
- The plan: one season per book
- In production: Season 2, adapting Chamber of Secrets, is filming at Leavesden
- Behind the camera: showrunner Francesca Gardiner, with Mark Mylod directing
What do you think is being built on that new stage? Let us know in the comments, and don’t forget to follow along for more Harry Potter news.
Source: Watford Observer
