Harry Potter fans will once again be able to head back into that magical world with the upcoming release of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, the third entry in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise that began in 2016.
While the original slate of Harry Potter movies are always a big grab for whatever streaming service has them, the Fantastic Beasts franchise is keeping things rolling on the big screen, with the latest adventure set to take place in 2022 with many of the series’ familiar faces and a couple of new ones.
Here is everything we know about Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.
When is the Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore release date?
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is hitting theaters on April 8 in the UK and April 15 in the US.
When announcing the title on Sept. 22, 2021, Warner Bros. also shared they were moving up the release date of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore from the originally planned July 15, 2022.
Friendly reminder, Warner Bros. has already announced that it would not be continuing its hybrid release strategy with HBO Max that has seen all of the studio’s 2021 films get a simultaneous, limited release on the streaming service as in theaters. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, as well as all 2022 Warner Bros. movies, will have an exclusive run in theaters before it arrives on streaming or digital services.
The world premiere of the movie took place recently, check out some of the highlights right here:
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore reviews — what are the critics saying?
As Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore awaits its April 8 UK and April 15 US release dates, the reviews for the latest wizarding world movie are starting to come in.
What to Watch's Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore review says that the third movie in the franchise has turned an important corner in breaking out from the shadow of the main Harry Potter franchise. While acknowledging some wobbly moments, the review sums up that The Secrets of Dumbledore "holds together well and has enough sense of its heritage to keep the fans happy."
Currently (as of April 5), The Secrets of Dumbledore is scoring a 76% "Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes and a 47 "mixed" score on Metacritic.
What is the plot of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore?
The original Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them film followed Newt Scamander, who travels to America with his magical suitcase filled with all kinds of, well, fantastic beasts. Most of the plot revolves around Newt’s animals mistakenly being released in 1920s New York City and him working to collect them with the help of witches Tina and Queenie Goldstein and muggle Jacob Kowalski, but the climax revealed that the real antagonist of the film was Gellert Grindelwald, a famously dark wizard.
The sequel, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, still included some new and amazing creatures, but the plot shifted to being about Newt working for Hogwarts Professor Albus Dumbledore to track down and stop Grindelwald. The film ended with our group of heroes split and Grindelwald gaining a group of followers as he plans to wage war against muggles.
Plot details for the third film (in a planned series of five) are being kept under wraps, as the synopsis on IMDb simply reads: "The third installment of the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them series, which follows the adventures of Newt Scamander." However, with the title being The Secrets of Dumbledore, we can likely expect that Jude Law’s version of the character will have a larger role to play in the film.
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore trailer
The final trailer for The Secrets of Dumbledore is here, and teases the biggest war yet as Grindelwald rallies up supporters to declare war on Muggles. You can watch the full, new trailer below.
A clip from the movie has also been shared online, with Newt, Jacob, Dumbledore and the crew visiting the Room of Requirement. Check it out below:
A behind-the-scenes video explaining the magic of Hogwarts has also been shared:
Who is in the Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore cast?
The main quartet of actors of the series — Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler and Alison Sudol — are all returning for the third film, as are series alums Ezra Miller, Callum Turner and the aforementioned Jude Law.
However, Johnny Depp, who portrayed Grindelwald in the first two films, will not be returning for the next adventure. Depp was removed from the role following the accusations of domestic abuse against him in the U.K. courts. The filmmakers have tapped Mads Mikkelsen to take over the role of Grindelwald.
Here is the cast list, again per IMDb:
- Eddie Redmayne - Newt Scamander
- Katherine Waterston - Tina Goldstein
- Dan Fogler - Jacob Kowalski
- Alison Sudol - Queenie Goldstein
- Jude Law - Albus Dumbledore
- Mads Mikkelsen - Gellert Grindelwald
- Ezra Miller - Credence Barebone/Aurelius Dumbledore
- Callum Turner - Theseus Scamander
- Poppy Corby-Tuech - Rosie
- Victoria Yeates - Bunty
- Jessica Williams - Eulalie Hicks
Who is the Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore director?
Since 2007’s Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the world of Harry Potter on film has been in the hands of David Yates, and that will continue with Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.
Yates has almost exclusively been directing Harry Potter/Fantastic Beasts films since 2007, with the lone exception being 2016’s The Legend of Tarzan in between Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. That won’t be changing anytime soon either, as Yates is already attached to direct both Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 4 and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 5.
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore posters
Here are the posters for Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore that have been shared by Warner Bros., including a series of character posters featuring those on team Dumbledore and those on team Grindelwald. Check them out right here:
As you wait for Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, you can watch the previous entries in The Fantastic Beasts series on HBO Max.
