It’d been speculated ever since the first trailer that the studio released that Voldemort’s pet snake and Horcrux Nagini would be making an appearance in human form in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. Now, with the release of today’s final trailer, we have confirmation that this is indeed the case.
At this point in the narrative, Nagini’s a human who can transform into a snake at will, though she feels the snake side of her growing stronger until the point of permanence. In the trailer, we see her making the transformation in the Parisian circus show sequence that’s been heavily teased in production images and previous promos. Presumably, she’ll be joining the battle at some point though, as we know from the original books and movies that she’s a formidable opponent.
But that’s a long way in the future for Nagini, as actress Claudia Kim pointed out in an interview with EW, where she said the following:
“It will be so interesting to see another side of Nagini. You’ve only seen her as a Horcrux. In this, she’s a wonderful and vulnerable woman who wants to live. She wants to stay a human being and I think that’s a wonderful contrast to the character. She does feel sometimes it’s not controllable. She is bound to [permanently] transform at some point to a beast so she feels this pressure that the clock is ticking. She has powers that are yet to be explored. I can’t confirm she has powers like wizards have. And she doesn’t have a wand.”
Most had assumed that Nagini was an Animagus in the style of Peter Pettigrew, a wizard that could transform into an animal form and became stuck that way. So, it’s interesting to hear that she might be something different entirely, especially as she doesn’t have a wand. It’s possible that Nagini’s merely a magically sensitive woman who never received formal magic training, which might explain why she develops such a quick bond with the Ezra Miller’s powerful Oscurial Credence Barebone.
“Sometimes I introduce myself as ‘Credence’s only friend. It’s amazing these two broken souls are able to form some kind of friendship within the circus. Credence is special to her because he encourages her to use her power.”
Finally, Kim concludes by saying that she’s glad this is being confirmed now as she doesn’t have to keep the secret anymore, stating:
“I’ve seen so many videos and fan theories on YouTube. Everyone is so good at analyzing every element there is. I’ve been very careful and aware that I should not spoil it for anybody. But I’ve been dying to say something!”
With the film being the most hotly anticipated release this fall, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is bound to clean up at the box office and perhaps even exceed the original. At the very least, you can bet I’ll be there opening night.
