Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, the 2011 fantasy finale directed by David Yates with a screenplay by Steve Kloves, concludes the two-part adaptation of J. K. Rowling’s 2007 novel and marks the eighth and final film in the Harry Potter series. The story follows Harry as he pursues and destroys Lord Voldemort’s Horcruxes to finally defeat him.

The film’s ensemble cast features Daniel Radcliffe as Harry, Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley, and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger, with supporting performances from Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, and many others. Principal photography ran from 19 February 2009 to 12 June 2010, with additional reshoots in December 2010.

Released by Warner Bros. Pictures in the UK and US on 15 July 2011, it is the only Harry Potter film presented in 3D. Critics praised it as a satisfying conclusion, highlighting its visual effects, performances, action, direction, musical score, and cinematography. It earned over $1.3 billion worldwide, becoming the third-highest-grossing film at the time and the top earner in the series. The National Board of Review listed it among the top ten films of 2011. It received three Academy Award nominations and many other accolades.

After burying Dobby, Harry enlists goblin Griphook to break into Bellatrix Lestrange’s Gringotts vault, suspecting a Horcrux is there. Griphook agrees in exchange for the Sword of Gryffindor. Wandmaker Ollivander identifies two wands from Malfoy Manor as belonging to Bellatrix and Draco Malfoy, noting Draco’s wand has transferred its allegiance to Harry. Inside the vault, they find Helga Hufflepuff’s cup, a Horcrux, but Griphook takes the sword and abandons them. They escape on a dragon after releasing it.

Harry has a vision of Voldemort’s fury at Gringotts and realizes a Horcrux tied to Rowena Ravenclaw is hidden at Hogwarts. The trio apparates to Hogsmeade, where Aberforth Dumbledore reveals he sent Dobby to Malfoy Manor and guides them through a secret passage to Hogwarts’ Room of Requirement. Neville Longbottom leads them inside.

When Severus Snape threatens the school, Harry reveals himself. Professor McGonagall duels Snape, forcing him to flee, then rallies Hogwarts for battle. Luna Lovegood advises Harry to consult Helena Ravenclaw’s ghost, who explains Voldemort cursed her mother’s diadem and hid it in the Room of Requirement. In the Chamber of Secrets, Ron and Hermione destroy the cup with a Basilisk fang. Draco, Blaise Zabini, and Goyle attack, but Goyle’s Fiendfyre curse kills him; Harry, Ron, and Hermione rescue Draco and Zabini. Harry stabs the diadem with the fang, and Ron kicks it into the fire.

As Voldemort’s army attacks, Harry learns Nagini is the final Horcrux. The trio overhears Voldemort tell Snape the Elder Wand will not serve him until Snape dies, since he killed Dumbledore, the wand’s previous master. Nagini mortally wounds Snape, who gives Harry a memory. Many Order members, students, and staff—including Fred Weasley, Remus Lupin, and Nymphadora Tonks—die in battle.

In the Pensieve, Harry sees Snape’s memory: Snape and Harry’s mother Lily were childhood friends; Snape loved her, but she married James, whom Snape despised. Snape tried to protect Lily by asking Dumbledore to hide the Potters. After her death, Snape became a double agent, agreeing to kill Dumbledore. Harry sees Snape conjure the Patronus doe that led Harry to the sword. He also learns he inadvertently became a Horcrux when Voldemort’s curse failed; Voldemort must kill Harry to destroy the soul shard. Using the Resurrection Stone from the Golden Snitch, Harry sees his parents, Sirius Black, and Remus, who comfort him before he faces Voldemort in the Forbidden Forest. Voldemort casts the Killing Curse, and Harry awakens in limbo, where Dumbledore’s spirit explains he is free of the link and can choose to return or move on.

Voldemort presents Harry’s apparently dead body, demanding surrender. Neville pulls the Sword of Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat, and Harry reveals he is alive. The Malfoys and many Death Eaters abandon Voldemort. Molly Weasley kills Bellatrix in the Great Hall; Neville beheads Nagini, destroying the last Horcrux. Harry defeats Voldemort when his Expelliarmus deflects the Killing Curse back. Afterward, Harry explains that Voldemort never controlled the Elder Wand; it recognized Harry as its master after he disarmed Draco, who had disarmed Dumbledore before Snape killed him. Harry chooses to destroy the wand.

Nineteen years later, Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, and Draco watch their children board the Hogwarts Express at King’s Cross.