How 'Harry Potter' Could Exist in the 'Star Wars' Universe

If the wizarding world of Harry Potter were descended from Star Wars’s galaxy, far, far away, then Harry could have wielded a lightsaber against the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, and Luke Skywalker could have enjoyed a non-robotic replacement hand similar to Peter Pettigrew’s magical, metallic one.

Currently featured on J.K. Rowling’s Pottermore is a glimpse into the history of the Pure-blood movement in the Potterverse, and it got us thinking about the Force. If the events in the Star Wars universe happened “a long time ago” then there could have been parallels between the two worlds.

Here’s what the new Pottermore entry says: The International Statute of Secrecy was founded a long time ago in 1692 “when the magical community went into voluntary hiding following persecution by Muggles.” If that lines up with the sudden mistrust of and the fall of the Jedi Order and the coming-to-power of the Empire and the Sith, then we’ve got some weird historical similarities. The Jedi went into hiding, and so did certain wizards.

Renowned science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke famously said: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Though it’s merely an adage, it has a truthful ring applicable to this theory. Let’s say the Force reaches beyond the galaxy that exists in Star Wars. Let’s say it reaches all the way to the Milky Way, to Earth. An “energy field” as powerful as the Force — which is sufficiently viewed as a mix between the scientific, the mythic, and the religious in the Star Wars galaxy — would seem like magic on Earth.

Like the Force, “good” magic is just referred to as “magic.” Both the Force and magic exist on the assumption that they are inherently good, or at least that they shouldn’t be used for evil. They are simply things that can be accessed by people with certain abilities and genes. When used as tools for nefarious means, they become something else and require a modifier, a separation from the norm: Dark magic = the Dark side of the Force.

People with high levels of Midi-chlorians can access the Force and are considered Jedi, just like people with enough wizarding blood have access to magic and are considered wizards. Both are hereditary.

And the Harry Potter world even has its versions of Force-sensitive people such as Han Solo and Finn: Squibs are born of magic and have knowledge of it, but have little to no access. Meanwhile, those with no access to the Force — Chewbacca, Poe Dameron, etc. — would be Muggles.

So this is what we propose: Wizards are actually just people on Earth who have access to Ashla (the Light side of the Force), and Dark wizards are those who fall into Boga (the Dark side of the Force).

Much like Dark wizards, those who use the Dark side of the Force are drawn in by promise of power and revenge. If the people on Earth who have access to the Force just figured out a different way to access its power than the Jedi in the Star Wars galaxy, then more power to them!

Going even further: Maybe the International Statute of Secrecy goes beyond the “international” in modern times. Maybe it verges on “intergalactic.” If users of the Force on Earth have figured out ways to access the Force unlike anyone before them, then that’s something other galaxies would want to get a hold of. Dark wizards such as Voldemort are bad enough when they’re wreaking havoc on Earth, but imagine the Sith having access to the broad range of powers figured out by the wizards. So keeping wizardry a secret from galaxies beyond our own is vital to the fate of the universe.

Just this once, we guess we can thank the Ministry of Magic for keeping us all safe from the Dark side.