HBO Replaces Familiar ‘Harry Potter’ Design, Restores J.K. Rowling’s Original Version
HBO’s new Harry Potter series isn’t going to recreate everything fans remember from the original movies.
In fact, one of the franchise’s most familiar pieces of Hogwarts imagery is already being replaced.
HBO and Warner Bros. have unveiled redesigned emblems for Hogwarts’ four houses ahead of the television adaptation. Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Slytherin, and Ravenclaw will all receive new designs that separate the upcoming series from the movies.
One of those changes, however, isn’t simply about creating something new.
HBO is restoring a detail from J.K. Rowling’s original books.
Ravenclaw Looks Different This Time
Anyone who grew up watching the Harry Potter movies probably associates Ravenclaw with a raven.
There’s an obvious reason for that.
Warner Bros.’ eight-film series represented the house with a raven on its crest, and that version subsequently appeared across merchandise connected to the movies.
But Rowling’s Ravenclaw is represented by an eagle.
HBO has chosen to follow the books.
The television series’ newly revealed Ravenclaw emblem features an eagle rather than the raven audiences saw associated with the house throughout the original movie franchise.
For book readers, this isn’t technically a new version of Ravenclaw at all. It’s a restoration of what was originally there.
All Four Hogwarts Houses Are Changing
The eagle isn’t the only difference audiences will notice.
HBO has moved away from the traditional crest designs associated with the original movies. Its new house symbols use circular designs incorporating the respective house names, animals, and colors.
Gryffindor still has its lion. Slytherin keeps its serpent. Hufflepuff remains represented by a badger.
Ravenclaw simply receives the biggest correction.
The designs have already appeared on banners within the new Hogwarts sets, meaning they’re more than promotional artwork created to market the series.
They’re becoming part of HBO’s Wizarding World.
🚨 🚨New look at the Hogwarts house banners in one of HBO’s event videos!
In the video, you can briefly see all four house crests!!
What do you think? pic.twitter.com/pnVXivFC2W
— PotterWorldwide (@PotterWorldW) August 30, 2026
HBO Is Building Its Own Hogwarts
That’s going to be increasingly important as the new Harry Potter moves closer to its debut.
HBO has to convince audiences to accept another interpretation of characters and locations that became cultural fixtures through the movies.
Copying those films exactly wouldn’t give the new adaptation much reason to exist visually.
Returning to Rowling’s books gives HBO another option.
The series can preserve the Hogwarts audiences know while restoring details that didn’t make the transition from page to screen intact.
Ravenclaw’s eagle is an early example of that approach.
After years of seeing a raven associated with the house through the movies, viewers will have to get used to something different when HBO takes them back to Hogwarts.
Except this time, the “new” version is actually the original one.
