WARNING: HARRY POTTER SPOLIERS AHEAD

With over 450 million books sold and a whopping $52 billion made in movie ticket sales,
the Harry Potter franchise is definitely one for the books. Rowling’s wizarding-world and dorky,
unlikely heroes have captured the hearts of readers all over the world. Even famous celebrities
such as Liam Payne and Jennifer Lawrence have gotten in on the action, but even the most dedicated
‘Potterheads’ will not see this heartbreaking truth coming: Harry Potter killed Hedwig. No,
I’m not lying. As a long-time Harry Potter fan myself, I had a difficult time accepting the murder
of such an innocent messenger owl; however this is in fact true. The scene of his death encompassed
a broomstick, a death-eater, and the seemingly innocent Harry Potter. To quote the author
herself, “The broomstick spun to earth, but he just managed to seize the strap of his rucksack and
the top of the cage as the motorbike swung the right way up again. A second’s relief, and then
another burst of green light. The own screeched and fell to the floor of the cage” (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows).

Now, this may sound like a tragic accident, but upon closer investigation, readers notice
that Harry Potter was the one who cast a fatal spell to get rid of Death Eaters chasing him in the
first place—hence the “burst of green light.” While the movie depicts that Hedgwig merely fell
off the broom as a result of this spell, this is clearly not true as Rowling’s own words read something
completely different.
Furthermore, fans have taken the event in a multitude of different ways such as writing
fan fictions and coming up with their own theories. One fan fiction in particular, ‘The Seven Potters,’
goes as far as to retell the story of Hedwig’s death in its true form and to depict Harry Potter’s
feelings toward the owl as unemotional. Another theory goes a step beyond, claiming that
the murder was a collaboration act between Harry Potter and Snape.

Overall, there are many theories revolving around the death of Hedwig, but the facts remain
true—he was murdered on the account of his beloved owner. Maybe Harry Potter is not so
innocent as we thought.