Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, J.K. Rowling’s series offshoot that spans only 128 pages, is headed for the big screen in November to jump-start a newfound trilogy at Warner Bros. That’s fairly surprising as is, evoking comparisons of Warner’s treatment of The Hobbit, but it seems this is an adaptation that grew quite spectacularly in the telling, after J.K. Rowling confirmed that the spinoff franchise will span not three movies, but five.
Confirmation hails from an ongoing Fantastic Beasts event in London, which brought together the film’s leading cast including Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Alison Sudol, Dan Fogler, director David Yates and Rowling herself, who confirmed that she has mapped out plans for all five movies. The announcement was later relayed through Twitter.
Currently, only the first film and its direct sequel are locked in with release dates – the latter of which is due to arrive in November of 2018 – but going off the current rollout, we could be looking at a new entry into this most ambitious new franchise every two-to-three years. Questions remain as to which cast members will remain on board for all five installments, though it seems safe to assume that Eddie Redmayne, Waterstone and Sudol would be game. Ezra Miller may be one character to bow out early, though, given his commitment to the DC Extended Universe. Mind you, that’s purely conjecture.
Per Twitter:
.@jk_rowling has just confirmed the magic continues in a total of FIVE MOVIES! We can’t wait! #FantasticBeasts
— Fantastic Beasts (@FantasticBeasts) October 13, 2016
In related news, the latest featurette introduces you to the IMAX fan event, and essentially folds together the worlds of Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts into one magical package.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them will be unleashed into theaters on November 18.
