With the global success of "Harry Potter," you'd think everybody and their brother would be jumping at the chance to compare their fantasy films to J.K. Rowling's creation, maybe hoping a little of that Boy Who Lived magic would rub off on them.

Think again. "It's a lot different, well, at least in the books I read," David Strathairn said of "The Spiderwick Chronicles," an upcoming fantasy movie based on a popular series of children's books. "I don't think it's going to be the next 'Harry Potter.'"

Both "Spiderwick" and "Potter" center on a group of young children as they're introduced to a magical world full of faeries, and goblins, and other fantastic, mythical creatures. The big difference, Strathairn giggled, might be his character - not so much a mentor as "the mad scientist, the mad botanist, the guy who maybe took too many mushrooms," he laughed. Try THAT on for size Albus Dumbledore! Read more...