“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” not only represents a new chapter in the lives of Harry and his friends and foes, it is one that blends humor and heartbreak, romance and redemption, and the past and the present as never before. And in the wake of Lord Voldemort’s return, the choice between good and evil has never had more serious ramifications.

Heyman offers, “One of the central themes in the Harry Potter books is the choices we make are what ultimately define us. It’s also something we have explored and will continue to explore in the films. Each of the books, as well as the respective films, chronicles a different year in Harry’s life, and the sixth installment is no exception. In the last film, we were watching Harry at a difficult stage—tormented by dreams, questioning himself and beset by personal demons. Now he’s a year older and that brings a different set of issues and responsibilities.”

“For me, the films have always been about a loss of innocence,” says Daniel Radcliffe, the actor behind the title character, who can perhaps no longer be called the boy wizard. “When Harry came into this world, it was all just amazing and brilliant and kind of pure. But as the films have gone on, that’s totally disintegrated, and he’s realizing that the wizarding world has just as many, if not more, challenges than the world he grew up in before.”

However, there are some challenges shared by teenagers in both worlds, whether wizard or Muggle. Producer David Barron acknowledges that there is no magic spell to evade the perils of adolescence, noting, “Romantic entanglements are never easy, at whatever age we are, but in adolescence they can be particularly difficult. I think Jo (J.K. Rowling) captured that wonderfully in the book and our remarkable director, David Yates, and our talented cast have brought it beautifully to the screen with both heart and humor.”

Heyman states, “Jo gave us the gift of these magnificent books and every one is a jewel. Her imagination never ceases to amaze me. Each Harry Potter book brings us new challenges and new opportunities, so coming into this movie, we were as excited as ever.”

Director David Yates had entered the world of Harry Potter with “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” the fifth film in the series. “I had such a great experience on the last film and was thrilled to be asked back,” he says. “I loved the sixth book. It is hugely entertaining, bringing more romance to Hogwarts than we’ve ever seen before combined with an intriguing uncovering of Voldemort’s past that has huge implications for the rest of the series.

“Another year brings up another set of challenges for Harry, Ron and Hermione, and the older they get the more complex they become,” Yates continues. “I really enjoyed exploring deeper aspects of the characters further with Dan, Rupert (Grint) and Emma (Watson). They are really keen to push and be pushed in their roles because we all want these characters to grow and develop both with the unfolding stories and the audience.”

The cast has equal praise for their director. “David is a joy to work with,” says Radcliffe. “I always looked forward to seeing him on the set because he has so much energy and enthusiasm, which is fantastic.”

Rupert Grint, who plays the role of Harry’s best friend, Ron Weasley, adds, “We all got on really well with David, so we were pleased he was coming back. Going through the script, he really listened to what we had to say about our characters, but he also offered a lot of help and guidance.”

Having scripted the first four Harry Potter films, Steve Kloves returned to the franchise to write the screenplay for “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.” Heyman comments, “In this film, more than in the previous ones, there were a number of narrative threads to follow, so that was one of the great challenges. We were blessed to have another wonderful screenplay from Steve Kloves, who wove them all together brilliantly. And David Yates really made them gel. He is a formidable director. Apart from telling a good story, the humanity of the characters is so important to him and he continues to draw out new sides of our actors that even I had never seen before.”