‘Weird Al’ Remembers Warner Bros. He refused a request for a Harry Potter parody

“If I’m doing a franchise, it’s usually better to do it and ask for forgiveness than permission,” Yankovic said, recalling the disappointment before he teamed up with Daniel Radcliffe on “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.”

Add “Weird Al” Yankovic to the growing list of artists who have been neglected by the higher-ups at Warner Bros.

No, the satirical musician didn’t have a live broadcast project Discovery fusion; His “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” premiered at TIFF in September and is distributed by Roku. rather in Interview with The Hollywood Reporter Yankovic promoted Eric Abel’s new film, and lamented one of the many properties he was denied parody rights to by a major movie studio. the culprit? Harry Potter.

“Ever ever, about a decade or two ago, I called the movie company just for a generic blessing like, ‘Hey, I’d like to do a Harry Potter parody,’” Yankovic recalled. “And I think they said no, or they never answered or Anything else… But sometimes when you’re dealing with concessions, asking permission, you know, there’s a lot of people out there who can say no, and they usually do.”

It’s a satirical tale (at least) on two fronts. First, Harry Potter and its soundtrack have been endlessly emulated: appearing in everything from the YouTube sensation “Potter Puppet Pals” to Darren Criss and AJ Holmes’ stage production “A Very Potter Musical.” Potter parodies are an oversaturated market now, and assuming Yankovic’s schedule is correct, they weren’t any less crowded then.

Secondly, Daniel Radcliffe – Harry Potter Himself He would go on to play a hardened version of Yankovic in “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.” The duo befriended during production with Yankovic extensively helping Radcliffe prepare.

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“Honestly, the one we’ve worked on the most together is the accordion,” Radcliffe said. IndieWire at TIFF. “He gave me some accordion lessons, something I could take to my grave in that moment. I didn’t need anything else.”

“[Yankovic] He’s authentically himself and that led to this great movie, as well as his amazing career,” Radcliffe continued. “This isn’t a movie where we expect you to sit back and take morals out of the story. But if there’s something to it, it’s about leaning into your own weirdness and being a way to find your own happiness.”

It’s a message Yankovic echoed again in his interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “If I’m making a concession,” he continued, before joking, “I’m usually better off doing it and asking forgiveness than permission.” [‘Weird: The Al Yankovic Story’] It is the last movie in the Harry Potter series.

“Maybe that’s the movie,” Radcliffe told The Hollywood Reporter. “This was his way of doing a parody of Harry Potter.”

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