Harry Potter: The Wait Is Over

Thousands of Northern Virginia moviegoers waited for hours on Thursday in eager anticipation of witnessing the Harry Potter film saga come to an end. Most area theaters sold out on Thursday, even for the 2:45 a.m. viewing.

Elizabeth Addington, 15, arrived at Alexandria's AMC Hoffman theater at 3:00 p.m. - eight hours before the movie. "I will cry. I cried in the last one when Hedwig (Harry Potter's owl) died," she said. "I don't have any Kleenex, but I brought my cloak to wipe my tears on."

AMC Hoffman played the film in 20 sold-out theaters, including IMAX and 3-D screenings. The Kingstowne 16 theater sold out on Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. and showed the movie on every screen.

"It's the end of an era," said Colleen Boyle of Alexandria, who bought her ticket at Kingstowne in June. "I was eight when the movies started, and now I'm the same age as the characters in the movies. We've grown up together." 

The AMC Tysons theater showed the movie on 15 of its 16 screens. "I'm pumped!" said Lorissa Waite, 21, of McLean. "I'm sad the series is ending, but I'm really excited to see this last movie... Fairy tales don't last forever." 

But what happens when the fairy tale ends?

Claire Dubas, 19, of Falls Church, attended the AMC Tysons theater with friends. "We're totally going to go out after this and celebrate the destruction of the evilest wizard of the age and toast to the boy who lived!" she said.