Wands at the ready, folks.
Doing good on those early rumors, Warner Bros. has now officially confirmed that the first-look trailer for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald will be with us tomorrow, March 13th. And there’s even a brief promo (see above) to prove it.
Alas, it doesn’t contain a shred of actual footage from the November prequel, leading us to believe that tomorrow’s long-anticipated teaser will be relatively short – otherwise, Warner Bros. runs the risk of spoiling David Yates and J.K. Rowling’s fantastical follow-up ahead of time. Instead, what we have here is a trailer announcement that’s designed around Potterheads, as the video addresses the wizarding world directly, before asking the franchise’s legions of fans to have their wands at the ready.
Set against the lush backdrop of 1920s Paris, we know The Crimes Of Grindelwald largely revolves around Johnny Depp’s titular dark wizard and his tyrannical campaign against non-magical beings. Truth be told, Warner’s prequel-sequel attracted some controversy for its decision to stand by Depp amid allegations of domestic violence, so we’re intrigued to find out whether his involvement has much of a bearing on the final box office numbers.
Per Warner Bros.:
At the end of the first film, the powerful Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) was captured by MACUSA (Magical Congress of the United States of America), with the help of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne). But, making good on his threat, Grindelwald escaped custody and has set about gathering followers, most unsuspecting of his true agenda: to raise pure-blood wizards up to rule over all non-magical beings.
In an effort to thwart Grindelwald’s plans, Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) enlists his former student Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends and family, in an increasingly divided wizarding world.
The Crimes Of Grindelwald, the second of five prequel movies in the Fantastic Beasts saga, has been slated for a premiere on November 16th. And it’ll seemingly be imbued with all of the magic and old-school charm that made the Harry Potter films so special.
