There are many reasons people love HBO shows, including the depth of their subject matter, the technical execution of their concepts, and the scope of their storytelling. The cable network has some of the most timeless stories that, even decades later, viewers who discover them get the same pleasure of watching as everyone else. From megahits like The Wire to cult favorites like The Leftovers, HBO has been at the forefront of some impressive storytelling. The network knows a good story when it sees one, and sometimes it collaborates with other studios and networks to bring shows to a larger audience.
In one of their numerous collaborations with the BBC, HBO was the home for the 2019 television adaptation of Philip Pullman‘s fantasy trilogy, His Dark Materials, stateside. The series had a perfect television run, with each season gaining more acclaim over the last. His Dark Materials ran for three seasons, and even though it did not achieve wild mainstream success like Game of Thrones, it remains one of the best HBO shows. That may explain why it has been one of the most-watched shows on iTunes over the last week, according to streaming data from FlixPatrol. The mystery of Dust and the story’s ability to blend together genres make His Dark Materials an engaging first-time watch or even a rewatch.
Starring Dafne Keen before her turn in Star Wars: The Acolyte, His Dark Materials explores various sci-fi themes but through a fantasy lens. Multidimensional travel and dark matter are prevalent in the story that uses theology to frame them as fantasy. Keen plays Lyra, an orphan who, while on a quest to find a missing friend, discovers some multiworld conspiracies that change everything she knew about herself. The series boasts strong performances from other main cast members, including Amir Wilson as Will, Ruth Wilson as Mrs. Colter, James McAvoy as Lord Asriel, and Lin-Manuel Miranda as Lee.
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Collider Exclusive · The Sorting Hat Awaits Which Hogwarts House Are You? Gryffindor · Slytherin · Hufflepuff · Ravenclaw
Four houses. One destiny. The Sorting Hat has considered thousands of students — now it’s your turn. Answer honestly and discover where you truly belong at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
🦁Gryffindor
🐍Slytherin
🦡Hufflepuff
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🦅Ravenclaw
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01
What quality do you value most in yourself? Answer as honestly as you can — the Hat always knows.
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02
A friend is being treated unfairly. What do you do? How you protect others says everything about who you are.
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03
What does success look like to you? What you’re working toward defines who you’re becoming.
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04
What is your greatest fear? Fear is the most honest thing about a person.
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05
The rules say no. Your gut says go. What do you do? Every institution has rules. What you do with them is a choice.
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06
What kind of friend are you? Who you are to the people you love is who you really are.
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07
You look into the Mirror of Erised. What do you see? The mirror shows the deepest desire of your heart.
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08
The Sorting Hat pauses. It whispers: “You could do well in any house. But what matters most to you — truly?” This is your tiebreaker. The Hat always listens.
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The Sorting Hat Speaks Your House Has Been Chosen
After careful deliberation, the Sorting Hat has made its decision. This is the house your values, your instincts, and your particular way of being in the world were made for.
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Gryffindor Tower · Scarlet & Gold
🦁 Gryffindor
You have nerve. Not the reckless kind, but the deep, quiet courage that shows up even when you’re terrified — especially then.
Gryffindors don’t act because they’re fearless — they act because they understand that some things are worth being afraid for.
You stand up for people when it would be easier to look away.
You charge toward what’s right even when the odds are terrible.
Harry, Hermione, Ron — the heroes of Hogwarts’s greatest chapter — all called the tower with the scarlet and gold home. And now, so do you.
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Slytherin Dungeon · Emerald & Silver
🐍 Slytherin
You are driven, sharp, and utterly clear-eyed about what you want and how to get there.
Slytherin has long been misunderstood — painted as the house of villains when it is, at its best, the house of those who refuse to accept limits placed on them by others.
You are resourceful, strategic, and you play the long game.
You know your worth. You protect your own fiercely.
The dungeon common room with its view of the Black Lake is yours — and the ambitions that will take you further than anyone expects are yours too.
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Hufflepuff Basement · Yellow & Black
🦡 Hufflepuff
You are the kind of person that makes the world genuinely better just by being in it.
Hufflepuff is not the “safe” house or the “leftover” house — it is the house of those with the greatest heart and the most unwavering integrity.
You show up. You work hard. You don’t need glory or recognition — you do what’s right because it’s right.
Your loyalty never wavers, even when tested.
Nymphadora Tonks, Cedric Diggory, Newt Scamander — some of the wizarding world’s finest. And now you join them.
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Ravenclaw Tower · Blue & Bronze
🦅 Ravenclaw
Your mind is your greatest gift, and you’ve always known it.
Ravenclaws are the thinkers, the questioners, the ones who find a puzzle irresistible and a good book better company than most people.
Ravenclaw is not merely about intelligence — it’s about the love of learning, the pursuit of truth, and the rare courage to admit you don’t know something yet.
You see the world with unusual clarity and depth.
Luna Lovegood, Filius Flitwick, Rowena Ravenclaw herself — all extraordinary, all original. And so are you.
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Is ‘His Dark Materials’ a Good Show?
Like many HBO shows, His Dark Materials takes time to settle into itself. Depending on who you ask, it took several episodes or an entire season to find its footing. But years after the show ended, it remains celebrated as a perfect, if not better, adaptation of Pullman’s books. The series started with a 77% score on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes and bowed out with a 90% in the third and final season, which aired in 2022.
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All seasons of His Dark Materials are available to stream on HBO Max. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
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Release Date
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2019 – 2022-00-00
Network
BBC One
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Directors
William McGregor, Amit Gupta, Leanne Welham, Charles Martin, Otto Bathurst, Euros Lyn, Dawn Shadforth, Harry Wootliff, Jamie Childs
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Writers
Jack Thorne, Francesca Gardiner, Amelia Spencer, Sarah Quintrell
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