Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Fans love consistency. That’s part of what has made the Marvel Cinematic Universe such a hit: each movie has the same comfort level as our dogeared childhood copies of Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew novels. Even when the names behind the camera change, we can be assured of the same familiar faces, the same balance of humor and solemnity, the same polished veneer regardless of character. But while Marvel may choose to have multiple directors adhere to their famous house style, it seems that Warner Bros. has gone a different route with the Harry Potter universe: just have one person shoot the whole darn thing.

J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them won’t just be a five-part return to the magical world of the Harry Potter movies; it has the potential to be groundbreaking for Hollywood diversity.

The rumors are true: not only will Johnny Depp have a role in the upcoming Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, as well as being cast in the sequel, the mystery character he’s playing is none other than Gellert Grindelwald, Albus Dumbledore’s friend/crush-turned-sworn-enemy back when both wizards were young and full of ambition.

Eddie Redmayne‘s currently hot on the press trail for Warner Bros.’ hopeful blockbuster Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, forced-smiling his way through the interview circuit to drum up buzz for the Harry Potter spinoff. But Uproxx’s Mike Ryan was more curious about following up on a comment the actor had made around this time last year, when he claimed on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that he had flubbed an audition for an unspecified character in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Ryan was intent on getting to the bottom of the situation, and previewed the following tidbit from his upcoming interview.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is already looking at four more sequels, despite the fact that the first isn’t even out in theaters yet. The folks Warner Bros. seem pretty sure they have a hit on their hands. While we don’t know a whole lot about the second one, other than it’s set in Paris and will star Johnny Depp in some capacity, we’ve heard as of today that the movie is casting, and looking for one very exciting role: Albus Dumbledore. You might’ve heard of him.

The way I see it, I’m kind of the target audience for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I’ve seen all of the movies but read none of the books, which puts me on a kind of level playing field with everyone else tackling J.K. Rowling’s original screenplay. Granted, a lot of people might know about the history of Newt Scamander or how the events of Fantastic Beasts fits into the Harry Potter universe as a whole, but I don’t mind being left out. I spent years of my adolescence being a Star Wars book snob; as an adult, it’s kind of nice to just be able to show up to a franchise and learn as you go.

With the premiere of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them only a couple short weeks away, fans old and new to the Potter universe are gearing up their excitement. As this movie opens up the franchise to a different time period and a slew of new characters and magical history and possibilities, we’ve got a whole new world ahead of us. A few new TV spots give us another look at that world before the premiere.

The first Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find spin-off relocates J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world to American, but don’t expect the next four films in the franchise to take place in the U.S. Director David Yates revealed last month at a Global Fan event that the sequel will find Eddie Redmayne’s Newt Scamander in another big city that’s not New York. Now we have confirmation of where that location will be: Paris!

No scandal can keep an actor down for long, as is the case with Johnny Depp, who has signed on to co-star in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them sequel (which will be the second in the five-film franchise). But that’s not all — apparently, he also has a very small role in the first installment, coming out this November.

With four more films planned in the new Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise, we’re starting to suspect that the wizarding world of 1920s New York is more directly connected to the Harry Potter series than previously thought. Need more proof? This helpful lesson in magical history from the insanely charming Ezra Miller should do the trick.