‘Harry Potter’ Spinoff ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’ Arriving November 2016
The saga of Harry Potter may have come to a definitive end with 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2,' but his mysterious wizarding world will live on! We already knew that original Potter Author J.K. Rowling would be making her screenwriting debut with upcoming spinoff film 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,' but now we know when we'll be able to see the movie!
Warner Bros. announced today that 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them' will hit theaters on November 18, 2016. Other than Rowling penning the script, there is no director and no actors attached to the project yet. That's not too surprising -- the film is still two-and-a-half years away from arriving in theaters. Considering how immaculately cast and crafted the original eight Harry Potter films were, expect to see some upper-tier talent approached to appear in front of and behind the camera on this one.
'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them' takes its title from a textbook that Harry and his classmates study during their seven years at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and was written as a companion book by Rowling to her main 'Harry Potter' series. The film (which will be the first of a planned trilogy) will have few direct connections to Harry's story, but it will take place in the same world, albeit, 70 years earlier and across the Atlantic Ocean. Although story details are scarce, we know it will follow a wizard named Newt Scamander who goes on a quest involving, well, fantastic beasts and where to find them. Rowling herself previously supplied additional details, saying:
Although it will be set in the worldwide community of witches and wizards where I was so happy for seventeen years, ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’ is neither a prequel nor a sequel to the Harry Potter series, but an extension of the wizarding world. The laws and customs of the hidden magical society will be familiar to anyone who has read the Harry Potter books or seen the films, but Newt’s story will start in New York, seventy years before Harry’s gets underway.
The 'Harry Potter' universe is so big and full of detail that we welcome a return visit to this world. Getting a chance to see the wizarding realm of 1920s America and beyond sounds incredible -- getting a chance to see another corner of Rowling's universe through fresh eyes feels like the best way to keep the fans excited (and Warner Bros.' pockets lined with cash). We'll keep you posted as we learn more.