Franchise fatigue is not a term one would associate with J.K. Rowling’s prestigious, lucrative and genre-defining Harry Potter IP. Throughout its literary series and 8 box office-shaking film run, the brand has accrued an impassioned fanbase like no other, and despite a brief hiatus, there’s already a crackle of excitement surrounding the release of David Yates’ prequel spinoff, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.
Continuing to peel back the magical layers of Warner Bros.’ starry feature, Entertainment Weekly has pulled an effective one-two punch today. Following up the opulent cover pic of Eddie Redmayne as famed magizoologist Newt Scamander, the outlet is keeping the hype train trucking along by releasing a slew of photos from the London set.
[zerg]Though his journey may begin under the Ministry of Magic in the English capital, it isn’t long before Redmayne’s idiosyncratic protagonist uproots and brings his defining research across the pond to New York city in the hope of pinpointing those elusive Fantastic Beasts.
It was only a matter of time before Warner Bros. returned to mine the expansive universe of Harry Potter, and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is certainly a promising angle to pursue. By distancing itself from the beloved arc of the Boy Who Lived, David Yates – who penned the script alongside Rowling – has afforded himself some creative breathing room as he sets about building an ajdacent, but no less engaing universe. Gemma Chan, Carmen Ejogo and Jon Voight, Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller, Colin Farrell and Hellboy himself, Ron Perlman join Redmayne for the journey of witchcraft and wizardry.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them will hope to ignite a newfound trilogy at Warner Bros. when it debuts on November 18, 2016.
