Suffering from post Harry Potter withdrawals? Hedwig blues got you down? Well, sorry to tell you but these characters are never returning to the big screen and probably never will (unless rebooted). So go read your books, nerds.
However, some good news, depending on how you see it, has arisen from the creator herself. On September 12, Warner Bros CEO Kevin Tsujihara and J.K Rowling, per their “expanded creative partnership”, announced a screen adaptation based on the author’s Hogwarts textbook “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”.
“We are incredibly honored that Jo has chosen to partner with WB on this exciting new exploration of the world of wizardry,” stated Tsujihara.
Apparently, WB execs approached Rowling with the concept of turning the property into film. Eventually, she opted out of the offer and pitched her own idea instead.
Den of Geek reports that one of Harry Potter’s producers David Heyman recently spoke lightly about the project “I can’t really talk about it yet. All I can say [is] that it’s great…That she’s doing it means that it’s very special.”
Set in 1930s New York—seventy years before the events of “Harry Potter”, “Fantastic Beasts” centers on its fictional and cleverly named author Newt Scamander and marks Rowling’s screenwriting debut.
For all you nerds wondering if the characters of this story have any visceral ties to the “Harry Potter” timeline, Rowling has confirmed it herself that Scamander’s grandson Rolf is married to Luna Lovegood. Unfortunately this time gap means none of our young Hogwarts students will be making an appearance, however this does not rule out a possible Dumbledore opr Mcgonagall name drop.
It is rumored that the story will follow Newt, a recent Hogwarts graduate, as he navigates the tedious and dangerous wizarding world, cataloging all sorts of beasts and magical creatures.
While this may not make for a very interesting plot, the promise of engaging special effects and the name potter tagged to it is sure enough to pull a large crowd.
In the vein of casting, nothing has been confirmed insofar, however, fans on Tumblr are pulling for recently unemployed Doctor Who alumni Matt Smith. There is even a petition going on change.org for his campaign, although it is not getting much traction.
“I feel very protective of [my fictional universe] and I already knew a lot about Newt,” said Rowling on the difficulty of allowing the project to take root.
Not only is this woman rolling in dumpster trucks of money and possibly drinking the bottled hopes and dreams of children, but she is still gaining royalties from the ever expanding Harry Potter franchise theme parks and video consumer products. She also has a miniseries in development with BBC based on her adult novel The Casual Vacancy.
Zhana Johnson
Features Correspondent
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