Harry Potter HBO TV Series: First Look At Dumbledore's Elder Wand

Thanks to the HBO documentary "Finding Harry: The Craft Behind the Magic," which centers on their upcoming series "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," we just got our first look at the Elder Wand. To jog your memory, that's the all-powerful magical artifact that's controlled — for the majority of the "Harry Potter" saga — by Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore.

Dumbledore, who was portrayed by both Richard Harris and Michael Gambon in the "Harry Potter" movies and will be portrayed by John Lithgow in this TV show, wins the wand during a duel with the famously evil wizard Gellert Grindelwald and hangs onto it for the remainder of his life, which is an extremely ethical thing to do if you know about the immense power of this wand. As an item that's part of the triad known as the Deathly Hallows (which some wizards don't even believe truly exists), the Elder Wand is said to be the most powerful magic wand in the entire wizarding world. Indeed, its rightful owner can use it to perform extraordinarily powerful spells as a result, so the idea of it falling into the wrong hands is pretty scary.

"Finding Harry: The Craft Behind the Magic" gave us some pretty solid glimpses at other bits and pieces of the "Harry Potter" TV show, which debuts near the end of 2026. Because everyone knows the significance of the Elder Wand, though, it feels notable that it's displayed fairly prominently.

So, where do we see the Elder Wand in the documentary about the making of the "Harry Potter" TV series? It's in a shot of John Lithgow's Albus Dumbledore, obviously, as he reads a book at what appears to be a pub (though it could also be the office of the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which is full of fantastical objects and occupies its own small tower in the castle). Sitting on the table near him, you can see a shape that must be the Elder Wand.

As a reminder, after Dumbledore — decades-old spoiler alert! — dies in "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," the Dark Lord Voldemort (whose casting hasn't been announced for this series as of this writing) breaks into Dumbledore's massive tomb and steals it. Unfortunately for Voldemort, pilfering the Elder Wand from a corpse's grave doesn't actually confer its power unto you, as it has to be won in battle ... so, after stealing the wand in the final book, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," Voldemort discovers that the wand doesn't work properly for him. Fans also know that the issue of the wand's allegiance ends up working out in favor of Harry Potter himself, played in the forthcoming series by Dominic McLaughlin. As such, we'll end up seeing all of that play out again, assuming the "Harry Potter" TV show gets to its intended seventh and final season.

"Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" premieres on HBO Max on Christmas Day.