Richard Harris and Jamie and by a niece, Annabelle. He had fallen into a coma in his final three days. Harris' body was cremated, and his ashes were scattered in the Bahamas, where he had owned a home. Harris was a lifelong friend of actor Peter O'Toole, and his family reportedly hoped that O'Toole would replace Harris as Dumbledore in "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban". There were, however, worries of insuring O'Toole for the six remaining films in the series. Harris was ultimately replaced as Dumbledore by the Irish-born actor Michael Gambon. On 30 September 2006, Manuel Di Lucia, of
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film) and Sirius. The present Harry realises that it was actually him who conjured the Patronus, and does so again. Harry and Hermione rescue Sirius, who escapes with Buckbeak. Exposed as a werewolf, Lupin resigns from teaching to prevent an uproar from parents. Sirius sends Harry a Firebolt broom, who happily takes it for a ride. With "Prisoner of Azkaban", production of the "Harry Potter" films switched to an eighteen-month cycle, which producer David Heyman explained was "to give each [film] the time it required." Chris Columbus, the director of the previous two films, decided not to return to helm the