Harry Potter and the $25 billion franchise

In anticipation of the latest film in the Harry Potter franchise, "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," the full lineup of Harry Potter will be returning to theaters for a week

beginning on Thursday.

Time Warner is looking to further cash in on an eight-film franchise that has already earned more than $7 billion in box office revenue since 2001. Scholastic, which sold more than 160

million copies of the seven Harry Potter novels in the U.S., also published the screenplay for the film. At $24.99 for the hardcover, that adds to the nearly $8 billion in book sales that

have already been wrung out of the series.

As in the Star Wars franchise, the value of toy sales shouldn't be underestimated. Hasbro and especially Mattel have both made money on Potter games and toys, and total sales so far are

estimated at over $7 billion. All told, the total value of the franchise so far has been around $25 billion.

NBCUniversal acquired the rights to the Harry Potter movies, including the "Fantastic Beasts" movies, for a seven-year TV deal beginning in 2018. Those rights are currently held by Walt

Disney Co. That deal is valued at $200 million, according to Bloomberg.

Other companies that have lined up in the past to get a piece of the Harry Potter intellectual property action are Johnson and Johnson, which made Harry Potter bathroom products, Coca-Cola,

which produced products tied to the first few movies, Fossil Group, which made Harry Potter watches, and Electronic Arts, which made Harry Potter computer games.

Lest it seems like the Harry Potter gravy train may be slowing, fear not! The 224-page "Fantastic Beasts" screenplay is expected to be made into its own trilogy.

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