The Trouble With Harry: Harry Potter battles Fans, Trolls

Tuesday 15th April 2008 @ 11:56 GMT

All is not well in the world of Hogwarts: JK Rowling is battling an unauthorised encyclopaedia. Meanwhile, an 80s horror remake could see Harry Potter facing an unlikely big-screen rival...

Harry Potter creator Rowling took the writer of The Harry Potter Lexicon to a New York courthouse on Monday 14 April, claiming the reference book infringed on her trademarks.

The Lexicon was based on a fan-created website
www.hp-lexicon.org, a site which Rowling had previously singled out for praise.

But when Lexicon librarian Steven Vander Ark announced he planned to turn the popular online resource into a book, Rowling summoned up a lawsuit to block publication.

As the lawsuit rumbles on, Harry Potter could soon find he has a big-screen rival, now that the cult horror film Troll (1986) is set for a remake.

By a quirk of fate, the lead character in Troll was named Harry Potter Jr, a young boy who must enter a magical land to do battle with an evil wizard and save his family.

Troll Writer/Director John Carl Buechler is not unaware of the similarities between his creation and Rowling's.

But with Warner Bros' lawyers watching his remake like owls, a troll could be the least of Harry Potter Jr's troubles...

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