Looking at Past “Harry Potter” Wins After Rupert Grint Claims Guinness World Record for Instagram Account

The entire Harry Potter franchise has seen its fair share of notable accomplishments, not only in the cinematic sense but also within the Muggle world.

Most recently, the Internet just about broke when Rupert Grint, famed for his role as Ron Weasley, announced his arrival on Instagram. Not only did fans welcome his arrival to the platform, but they were also amazed to see the first photo of his newborn daughter, Wednesday.

The Internet wasn’t the only thing that broke when Rupert posted his first pictures. The actor also broke the Guinness World Record for fastest time to reach 1 million followers on Instagram. It only took 241 minutes, or just over four hours, to claim the title. The previous holder of the record, Sir David Attenborough, hit one million followers in four hours and 44 minutes. Other stars of the Harry Potter movies were welcoming to both Grint and his daughter. Tom Felton wrote in the comments, “Welcome Weasley, it’s about time. Love to Wednesday xx.” Rupert has accumulated over 3.6 million followers to date. Congrats, Rupert!

Speaking of records, there are many other notable accomplishments the Harry Potter books, movies, and fans hold.

According to the Guardian, in the United Kingdom, all seven of the books hold various spots in the top ten highest-grossing books of all time. The other three books in the top ten are The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, Angels and Demons by Dan Brown, and Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James.

The movies, despite being loved by fans from all over the world, are a different story. Despite the massive success of all eight movies, only one ranks within the top 25 highest-grossing films of all time. At the time of its release in 2011, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 earned an astonishing $1.34 billion at box offices. However, in later years, several movies came to claim their place in the hierarchy. Five Marvel movies (Avengers: Endgame, Avengers: Infinity War, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Black Panther) hold spots in the top 15 highest-grossing films of all time.

Last year, the community of Bandon, Ireland, claimed the world record for largest gathering of people dressed as Harry Potter. Families and fans gathered, and 1,088 Harrys were counted at the occasion. Bandon, Ireland, still holds the record, but world records are anything but permanent.

Believe it or not, one superfan out there has the world’s largest collection of Harry Potter memorabilia. Menahem Asher Silva Vargas from Mexico has held that Guinness World Record since 2013. His collection, at the time he received the record, had over 3,000 items, which surpassed the previous record by miles. The former holder of the record had just over 800 items in their collection.

While Silva Vargas holds the world’s largest collection of Harry Potter memorabilia, there is another fan with a separate record for her own collection. Victoria Maclean from the UK claimed the Guinness World Record for the largest collection of Wizarding World memorabilia. The big difference here is that Maclean’s collection includes pieces from both the Harry Potter franchise and the Fantastic Beasts franchise. The two are so close in the total number of items in their respective collections, but Maclean has over 3,600 items from the Wizarding World. She claimed the record in February 2019.