The Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix movie made a frustrating change to Sirius Black's character that completely ruined his story. While the death of Harry's godfather was tragic regardless, the more profound lessons it was meant to reflect were entirely lost in Warner Bros films. Not only did this lessen the event's overall impact, but the Boy Who Lived walked away from the situation carrying all the responsibility for the tragedy, which wasn't the case in the Harry Potter books. Now, it's up to HBO's TV remake to set the record straight about Sirius Black.

At the end of the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix movie, Voldemort tricked Harry into coming to the Ministry of Magic by giving him false visions of Sirius being tortured. When the Boy Who Lived fell for it, Sirius came out of hiding to protect his godson but lost his life in the battle. It was entirely Harry's fault since he had made no effort to find an alternative solution before rushing off to the Ministry. Additionally, Sirius' arrival in the movies was purely self-sacrifice, and he was categorized firmly as a hero in the end. While all of this is true to an extent in the Harry Potter books, several major puzzle pieces were cut.

The Order Of The Phoenix Movie Cut All The Ways Sirius Was Responsible For His Own Death

The Harry Potter Movies Presented Sirius As A Morally One-Note Character

Harry felt entirely responsible for Sirius' death at the end of the Order of the Phoenix book, but Dumbledore pointed out this was an unfair judgment. Sirius made various decisions that directly resulted in the situation at the Ministry of Magic His most significant sin was his poor treatment of the house-elf Kreacher. Sirius' abuse of his old family servant led Kreacher to betray his master, giving information about the Order of the Phoenix to Bellatrix Lestrange which allowed Voldemort to use Sirius against Harry:

“I warned Sirius when we adopted twelve Grimmauld Place as our headquarters that Kreacher must be treated with kindness and respect. I also told him that Kreacher could be dangerous to us. I do not think that Sirius took me very seriously, or that he ever saw Kreacher as a being with feelings as acute as a human's — ”

“Don’t you blame — don’t you — talk — about Sirius like — ” Harry’s breath was constricted, he could not get the words out properly. But the rage that had subsided so briefly had flared in him again; he would not let Dumbledore criticize Sirius. “Kreacher’s a lying — foul — he deserved — ”

“Kreacher is what he has been made by wizards, Harry,” said Dumbledore. “Yes, he is to be pitied. His existence has been as miserable as your friend Dobby’s. He was forced to do Sirius’s bidding, because Sirius was the last of the family to which he was enslaved, but he felt no true loyalty to him. And whatever Kreacher’s faults, it must be admitted that Sirius did nothing to make Kreacher’s lot easier — ”

Kreacher's betrayal further relates to Harry's innocence in Sirius' death since the boy did attempt to take other action before heading to the Ministry of Magic in the Order of the Phoenix book. He used Floo powder to contact Grimmault Place to check if Sirius was really in the Department of Mysteries. Kreacher lied, stating that Sirius had left when he was really at home—something that wouldn't have happened if Sirius had treated Kreacher like a "being with feelings as acute as a human's."

Finally, there was Sirius' treatment of Harry. While the pair had grown close during the events of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and the beginning of Order of the Phoenix, a riff had developed between them leading up to the man's death. Sirius frequently tried to take risks with his safety and freedom, forcing Harry to be the responsible and logical one of the two. This created the sense in Harry that Sirius' safety fell to him and that his godfather couldn't be trusted to make rational decisions in his own interest. This was all, of course, completely absent from the Harry Potter movies.

Sirius had given Harry a two-way mirror for Christmas in the Order of the Phoenix book, but Harry was afraid that using it would encourage his godfather to take unnecessary risks. So, he forgot about it when the time came to check if Sirius was home or at the Ministry.

Sirius' Story Carried A Lot Of Deeper Lessons That The Movies Completely Missed

Sirius' Ending Connected With The Greater Themes Of Harry Potter

Not only are these changes an injustice to Harry since he carried the blame for Sirius' death in the Harry Potter movies, but they reduce the thematic significance of the man's story. The characters in Harry Potter can rarely be defined as just heroes or villains, with Harry and Voldemort being the exceptions. Sirius wasn't a bad man, and the fact that he chose to turn away from his family's pure-blood mania says a lot about his overall goodness. However, the fact that his downfall was the direct result of his poor treatment of a house-elf is a reminder that escaping unconscious prejudices isn't so easy a task.

The fact that Sirius' downfall was the direct result of his poor treatment of a house-elf is a reminder that escaping unconscious prejudices isn't so easy a task.

Dumbledore warned Sirius that Kreacher deserved kindness, but he didn't listen. Molly told Sirius that he couldn't think of Harry as a replacement for James, but he didn't listen. Harry told Sirius that the way he and James had treated people while in school wasn't just young boys having fun, but he didn't listen. Sirius Black was still a hero in the end since he gave his life to protect Harry. However, his book ending was still a cautionary tale about the risk of leaving hidden biases and beliefs unchecked. Comparatively, Sirius' story in the Harry Potter movies was frustratingly shallow.

Sirius Black's Character Can Be So Much Better In HBO's Harry Potter Remake

Sirius' story in the Harry Potter movies is a perfect example of why HBO's TV remake could be so valuable. The films simply didn't have time to include the nuances of various characters' storylines, which meant that the themes and lessons of Sirius' ending were sacrificed to focus on stronger elements of the plot. However, the Harry Potter remake will have a lot more time to really dive into the nitty gritty, which means a book-faithful version of Sirius's character will be brought to the screen.

Ironically, Regulas died while sacrificing his life for Kreacher, while Sirius met his end because of his poor treatment of the house-elf.

This will be especially interesting since the Harry Potter remake can dive into Sirius' past through flashbacks, showing what life had been like for him and his brother, Regulus. The younger Black sibling chose to join the Death Eaters, while the older one joined the Order of the Phoenix. However, ironically, Regulas died while sacrificing his life for Kreacher, while Sirius met his end because of his poor treatment of the house-elf. It's a tragically poetic story that rests between the lines of the Harry Potter books, but the remake can finally bring it to the surface, making Sirius' character even better.