Filmmaker Ron Howard has revealed that he was asked to direct the first Harry Potter film, but turned it down because he didn’t want to do any more fantasy projects.

Howard, 67, said he had just finished work on “The Grinch,” starring Jim Carrey as the titular green monster, when he was offered the job.

During an appearance on the Graham Norton Show, the director and producer explained that he did not want to spend “a few more years” in a “fantasy world”.

“Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” the first part of the blockbuster series, was ultimately directed by Chris Columbus and was the highest-grossing film of 2001.

Howard’s next release was A Beautiful Mind, which won four Oscars.

He said on BBC One: “I’ve read the books and they were fantastic, but to be honest I’d only just finished The Grinch.

“It was fun and fascinating, but it was an incredibly demanding and difficult production, so I didn’t want to stay in that fantasy world for a few more years.

“I knew Harry Potter was good, but it was a huge success.”

Howard said his memoir, “The Boys,” was inspired by his friend, Hollywood star Tom Hanks.

He said: “I have been asked many times over the years to write my memoirs, but it was Tom Hanks who gave me the idea for the book.

“I told him I’d been asked and he said, ‘I would just focus on your childhood – everyone wants to know how you got through that and what it was like.’

“It’s a very honest look back at our lives – the good and the bad, but I think it’s also an interesting family story.”

The Graham Norton Show airs on Fridays at 10.35pm on BBC One and is available on iPlayer.