Harry and Hermione seemed like a perfect romantic match in the Harry Potter movies, but that is only because of some significant changes made from the books. The ending of the Harry Potter series was divisive since it saw Harry end up with Ginny while Hermione end up with Ron. This seemed like a poor fit, especially to movie audiences, since it had always been Harry and Hermione who had been shown to have the best chemistry. However, the dynamic of their relationship was very different in the Harry Potter books.

In the Harry Potter movies, Harry and Hermione were the powerful force of the Golden Trio. Harry had the bravery, and Hermione had the brains, and together they took down Lord Voldemort. Ron more or less just followed along for comedic relief. Not only did they save the world together, but they comforted each other when they were sad, gave each other needed advice, and slow-danced in misleadingly romantic scenes. All of this made it seem that it should have been Harry and Hermione that ended up together. However, in the Harry Potter books, they weren’t nearly as compatible.

The Harry Potter Movies Cut All Harry & Hermione’s Conflicts (So They Seem Like Soul Mates)

Since the Harry Potter movies were working with a much shorter format than hundreds of pages dedicated to each book, they were forced to simplify many characters. This was true for even the Golden Trio, who lost many of the nuances of their arcs from the book to the screen. For example, while Hermione was nearly perfect in the movies, her character was far more flawed in the books. She had a tendency for small-mindedness and often dismissed the opinions of others if they didn’t have concrete evidence. For someone very instinct-driven like Harry, this could become a significant issue.

Several times throughout the Harry Potter books, Harry would come to an entirely correct conclusion, all thanks to his excellent instincts, and Hermione would dismiss him altogether. When Harry believed Draco Malfoy had become a Death Eater, she laughed in his face. She became angry when he began to believe in the Deathly Hallows and told him he was buying into children’s stories. When he said he thought there was a Horcrux at Hogwarts Castle, she disagreed so vehemently that she refused to allow him to check. All of this frustrated Harry to no end, which is why he saw her more like a sister than anything else.

Hermione, Ron, & Ginny Were Simplified In The Harry Potter Movies

Though Ron and Hermione argued frequently throughout the Harry Potter books, this often had to do with Ron’s difficulty in accepting his feelings for Hermione or because of some uncouth thing he said. However, Ron almost always sided with Hermione whenever Harry and she got into one of their disagreements. He often just assumed that Hermione knew what she was talking about. He alwasy admired her intelligence, another character quality that the Harry Potter movies missed out on.

Just as Hermione was simplified into the perfect girl, Ron was altered to be a downright jerk. Though the character grew out of being mean to Hermione in the books, he alwasy treated her harshly in the movies. Then, when it came to Ginny, the changes were even more dramatic. Since she wasn’t a member of the Golden Trio, the Harry Potter books didn’t have the time to explore her character. Therefore, the movies showed only Ron’s timid and awkward little sister instead of the fierce and funny girl that Harry fell in love with in the books. She and Harry had no chemistry—leaving Hermione looking like the better option when she was never supposed to be.