Reshot Deathly Hallows Epilogue Saves Millions From Corny 'Nostalgic Look Back' During Credits

Today in mind-blowing numbers: The film shoot for both parts of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows lasted 261 days. 261 days! It was so long, in fact, that the thought-to-be final moments on set for Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint were not actually their final moments; the reshot epilogue was fittingly the end for the young stars, and it will save fans from having to sit through some interminable home movies during the closing credits.

[Spoilers ahead if you never read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.]

After the initially shot epilogue was deemed unusable -- in part because of those crappy looking make-up effects -- producer David Heyman assembled the team again for an ending he calls "really charming." Exciting! All the more because of what it prevented.

"We thought about a nostalgic look back at how the kids have grown over the previous films," Heyman told EW. "We decided against it because this ending captures all of that."

Yikes. Good decision. The idea of watching clips of young Radcliffe, Watson and Grint grow into slightly older versions of themselves at the conclusion of Deathly Hallows feels just a tad too on the nose. (Why not just accompany those images with Sarah McLachlan and get it over with?) Besides, Heyman had to save something for those Harry Potter documentaries, right? Accio, don't kill the golden goose in the closing credits!

· Harry Potter and the Twice Shot Ending: Behind the scenes of 'Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows -- Part 2' [EW]