Harry Potter and the lucrative two-part finale

The final Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, will be split into two films to be released six months apart, according to reports in Hollywood.

Tinseltown bible Variety says the movies - installments seven and eight in the boy wizard's saga - will be filmed concurrently before part one hits screens in November 2010.

It is Warner Bros' solution to making their adaptation of J K Rowling's final Potter book - which clocks in at 745 pages - more manageable for cinema audiences.

David Yates - who took the helm for 2007's Harry Potter and the Order of The Phoenix and is currently directing Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince - will once again call the shots.

Filming for the Half Blood Prince is currently underway, with cast regulars Daniel Radcliffe, Dame Maggie Smith and Alan Rickman decamping to Gloucester for several scenes.

According to Variety, the Harry Potter franchise has raked in a magical $4.5 billion (£2.21 billion) worldwide at box office.

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