The fan following of the novels is certainly not at all in question. The franchise sparked an interest of very strong intensity. But it's no stretch to say the films bearing the Harry Potter name have always taken a back seat to the novels. Each film has done quite well at the box office and overall the series has been received positively, especially given the frequently lower quality of cinematic adaptations of literature compared to their written counterparts.
The promotional train for the sixth entry in the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, is just starting to rev up for a July 15 release. Yet since the seventh and final installment in the novel series was published, interest in the film franchise seems to have waned in the public at large. Fantastical spectacles with 2009 release dates such as Terminator Salvation, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra have all gotten significantly more of a promotional push. Part of this may be attributed to the assumption that the Harry Potter franchise has a built-in fan base that need not be sold on the film, but it can be argued that all the previously mentioned, big name brand films do as well.
At the height of 'Potter Mania' the filmmakers seemed prepared to milk the series for all it was worth, going so far as to establish plans to split the last novel into two separate films. Now the minds behind the series can't seem to get their ducks in a row, even squandering distribution arrangements to the extent that Transformers will hold sway in the IMAX format for weeks after Harry Potter is released. It will be interesting to see how the film performs next month.
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