Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban began filming on February 23, 2003, at Leavesden Studios in Hertfordshire, England. The third chapter in the Harry Potter films adopted a new approach, as it was directed by Alfonso Cuarón. Cuarón has taken Hollywood by storm, recently directing films ranging from A Little Princess (1995) to Y tu mamá también (2001).

While taking a step back for this film, Chris Columbus (director of the first two Harry Potter movies) did not drop out of the picture. Columbus stayed on crew as one of four executive producers for the film. The other three executive producers, in alphabetical order are Michael Barnathan, Callum McDougall, and Mark Radcliffe.

Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson made another appearance as the main trio from the house of Gryffindor. All three stars have been involved in the Harry Potter movies since the first film, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in 2001.

The majority of the cast from the first two Harry Potter movies participated in the third film as well. Howevever, a few cast members did not make a reappearance for various reasons. Shirley Henderson (Moaning Myrtle), John Cleese (Nearly Headless Nick), Sean Biggerstaff (Oliver Wood), and several other actors did not appear in the film, even though their characters were in Rowling's third book. Also, Richard Harris, who portrayed Albus Dumbledore in the first two films, is not in the third film, as he passed away in recent years.

Although some past cast members did not return for Prisoner of Azkaban, several cast members made the movie their Harry Potter film debut! These include Michael Gambon as the new Dumbledore (Hogwarts Headmaster), Gary Oldman as the elusive Sirius Black, Timothy Spall as the malicious Peter Pettigrew, David Thewlis as the loveable Professor Lupin, and Emma Thompson as the offbeat Professor Trelawney.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was released on May 31, 2004 in the United Kingdom and June 4, 2004 in the United States and other countries. In its first weekend in U.S. theaters, the film grossed an impressive $93.7 million. However, due to the fierce summer movie competition and the lack of a major holiday weekend 4 weeks into its run, Prisoner of Azkaban only grossed $250 domestically, considerably less than its two predecessors. 'Azkaban' received rave reviews from critics, most of whom thought that it was a major improvement from the first two movies.

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