16 plot holes in the Harry Potter movies you probably missed
15 September 2020, 17:27
Daniel Radcliffe On Harry Potter Reunion For Philosopher's Stone 20th Anniversary
Here's every plot hole in the Harry Potter movies that will make you think "how on earth did I miss that?"
It's been nine years since Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2 was released, and we're still all totally hooked on Harry Potter.
And whether you grew up with the books, films, or mildly obsessing over Tom Felton, you've got to be a serious super-fan to notice some of the plot holes we were left with.
Turns out the movies weren't perfect after all...shocking, right? You'll never watch the movies the same way again after learning about these plot holes.
READ MORE: QUIZ: How well do you actually remember all 8 Harry Potter films?
READ MORE: J.K. Rowling slammed for ‘transphobic’ new book about cross-dressing serial killer
1) Harry should've been expelled at the beginning of Prisoner of Azkaban
Everyone knows underage magic is up there with the deadliest of sins, and every wizard under the age of 17 has the Trace charm placed on them so they can be tracked by the Ministry of Magic when they're up to no good.
However, at the beginning of Prisoner of Azkaban, a 13-year-old Harry uses the Lumos charm to create a light under his covers so he can read a book.
Not only was it never brought up by the Ministry, but he could've just saved the trouble and turned the light on. Guess the rules don't apply when you're Harry Potter, huh?
2) Wait, what colour were Lily's eyes?
Harry supposedly had the same eyes as his mother, but, if you look closely at Lily during the films, her eyes actually change.
Ok, yes she's a witch so technically her vision should be the least of our worries. However, in the books, Harry and his mother both had green eyes. Daniel Radcliffe has blue eyes, so the makers of the film hired a blue-eyed actress to portray his mother.
All good, right?
Wrong.
The blue-eyed beauty remained pretty intact for most of the series, but in The Deathly Hallows Part 2 shortly after Snape speaks to Harry about how much he reminds him of Lily, we get a flashback to her as a child. With brown eyes.
SO WHAT IS THE TRUTH?
3) The death eaters destroyed the Millennium Bridge...but it didn't exist at the time
In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Voldemort causes the Death Eaters to start causing chaos around the country, destroying landmarks and terrifying the public. One famous landmark in particular that was destroyed in the opening scene was London's Millennium Bridge.
Given that the Harry Potter films use the same timelines as the books, that would make it the year 1996. The Millennium Bridge however, wasn't constructed until 1998 and it wasn't opened until the year 2000. Oops.
4) What on earth happened to Barty Crouch Jr.?
Ok, so we know that he died in Goblet Of Fire after he put Harry's name into the goblet and subsequently had his soul removed by dementors.
But then what?
We know he's not alive because he never escaped from Azkaban along with Bellatrix and the other Death Eaters, but following his demise, there's tumbleweed.
The movie never gives an explanation as to what happens to him, and his fate remains a mystery.
5) Polyjuice potion is *very* inconsistent
We're introduced to the powers of Polyjuice potion in The Chamber Of Secrets when Harry and Ron use it to transform into Crabbe and Goyle. Although their looks changed once they'd drank the potion, Harry noted "we still sound like ourselves" meaning that the Polyjuice potion can't change people's voices.
However, later in The Goblet of Fire, Mad-Eye Moody sounds like...well, Mad-Eye Moody. Moody should have had the voice of Barty Crouch Jr. if you still sound like your original self. Either that, or he's really good at impressions.
READ MORE: QUIZ: How well do you know Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets movie?
6) Colin Creevey can't take photos
And no, that's not an insult to him. Remember the little first year Gryffindor from Chamber of Secrets that loved snapping life at Hogwarts using his muggle camera?
Well, by the time we get to the fourth film, we find out that it's not actually a plausible hobby. Sorry Colin.
Muggle technology doesn't work at Hogwarts, and it would make his camera totally pointless, as he wouldn't be able to take any pictures.
7) What was Helga Hufflepuff's job?
It's no secret that the founders of the school's houses all played some part in the creation of Hogwarts.
Gryffindor cast the spell on the Sorting Hat, Ravenclaw created the moving staircases, and Slytherin built the Chamber of Secrets - but what about Hufflepuff?
While we imagine it's something pure and wholesome (because what could be more Hufflepuff?), we never actually got to find out.
Maybe she just relaxed.
8) The most intelligent wizard of all time really wasn't that smart
Yes Dumbledore, we're talking to you. As one of the most looked-up-to wizards in history, you'd think he had some pretty cool tricks up his sleeves.
And yet, throughout the entire Harry Potter series, a group of teenagers that are more often stupid than not, seem to solve the case before him. He'd also frequently ignore Harry reporting suspicious sightings to him (you know, of Voldemort, the one that tried to KILL him) and shrugged it off as an overreaction.
It turns out older doesn't always mean wiser.
9) Lavender Brown wasn't always white
This has been a well-known movie loose-end for some time, but, if you didn't know already, the actress for Lavender Brown changed...and they look nothing alike.
Jessie Cave, a white actress, portrayed Lavender Brown in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. In the earlier films, two actresses portrayed her, Jennifer Smith and Kathleen Cauley, both of whom are black. As Lavender was originally more of a background character, the best guess is that they probably thought no one would noticed.
Instead, it caused one of the biggest controversies the movie series had seen.
10) Wait...who are the Marauders?
Ok, if you've read the books, you'll know them inside out. In the Prisoner of Azkaban, Remus Lupin explains that the Marauders were himself, Sirius Black, James Potter and Peter Pettigrew - and together they created the Marauders Map.
He also tells Harry that they gave themselves the nicknames Moony, Padfoot, Prongs and Wormtail - something we never saw in the movies.
Fast forward a few films, and we see Harry refer to Sirius as Padfoot and Peter as Wormtail. For those who are movie-fluent only, they probably had no idea what he was talking about.
11) There's a good explanation as to where Crabbe went
We're introduced to Draco Malfoy's sidekicks Crabbe and Goyle early on in the series when Harry and Ron use Polyjuice potion to turn themselves into the pair in Chamber of Secrets.
However, despite being Malfoy's loyal confidantes, Crabbe mysteriously disappears in the movie version of the Deathly Hallows - although he was still in the books.
So, where did he go?
Well, in the movie, rather than Crabbe setting the Fiendfyre off in the Room of Requirement, he's replaced by Blaise Zabini with no explanation.
It turns out there's a reasonable explanation. Jamie Waylett, the actor known for playing the character, was arrested in his mother's London home and plead guilty to possession of cannabis and possession of a knife. He then lost his role in the films because of it. Awkward.
12) Does Harry even need glasses?
Harry Potter is merely a hipster in a cloak and you can't convince us otherwise. Wizards can do *anything*. We've watched them kill, save lives, heal broken bones, and somehow, Harry can't get his eyesight sorted.
One incredibly smart Tumblr user also wrote: "Could Voldemort have defeated Harry if he just said 'Accio Glasses'? Like the Boy Who Lived ain’t got sh*t if he’s visually impaired."
A very valid point.
13) They need to quit locking the doors
Ever notice how the doors are locked at Hogwarts? Whether it's the Order of the Phoenix when the gang breaks into an office to use the Floo network, or the Forbidden third-floor corridor from the Philosopher's Stone - these sacred and secretive locations of the castle are secured by...locks.
Didn't the students learn how to do the old swish and flick on their first day of school? Everyone knows it only takes one 'Alohamora' to unlock any door. Hogwarts' security really didn't think that one through.
14) Ollivander's should've gone out of business
We all know that the wand chooses the wizard. But, Ollivander should really think about putting his prices up.
A wand containing unicorn hairs, phoenix feathers and Hornbeam will set you back seven galleons, but we then find out that one single strand of unicorn hair is 10 galleons.
The guy is selling at a three galleon loss.
15) The Triwizard tournament can't have been *that* exciting
It's pretty good entertainment watching your friends fight a dragon in the name of sport. But when it comes to rounds two and three of the infamous Triwizard Tournament...what do the spectators actually get to see?
Task two was underwater in the lake, and task three took place in the maze. So if you're not watching it on TV, there can't be that much going on really.
16) There's a troll in the dungeon!
In The Philosopher's Stone, we learn that Professor Quirrell planted the troll in the dungeon, and when the alarm was raised, all students are ordered back to their dormitories.
However, given that Professor Quirrell is an extension of Voldemort, it seems bizarre that all students would be told to go to their dormitories. Especially since we know that Slytherin's dorms are in the dungeons.
What a way to kill off some of your own, huh? None the less, no one was eaten alive thankfully.
