Nearly three years ago, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, the most recent installment in the Harry Potter prequel film series, left moviegoers with a big cliffhanger. Now, we know when the next sequel will arrive. Warner Bros. has announced that Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore will hit theaters on Friday, April 15, 2022.
Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling is once again collaborating with screenwriter Steve Kloves on the script. David Yates, the director of four Harry Potter films and both of the earlier Fantastic Beasts movies, is also returning to helm The Secrets of Dumbledore.
Eddie Redmayne is reprising his role as Newt Scamander, alongside Jude Law as the young Albus Dumbledore. Katherine Waterston will also be back as Tina Goldstein, alongside Dan Fogler as Jacob Kowalski, Alison Sudol as Queenie Goldstein, Ezra Miller as Credence, Jessica Williams as Professor Eulalie Hicks, and Callum Turner as Theseus.
However, the most notable addition to the cast is Hannibal, Rogue One, and Doctor Strange star Mads Mikkelsen. He will be taking over the role of the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald. Johnny Depp originated the part in Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, as well as its first sequel. Depp’s ongoing legal dispute with his ex-wife, Amber Heard, led the actor and Warner Bros. to part ways.
Rowling has previously indicated that young Dumbledore was in love with Grindelwald, at least until he saw him for who he truly was. By then, it was too late. Dumbledore and Grindelwald had a blood pact, which ensured that the powerful wizards couldn’t fight one another. This is why Dumbledore used Newt as his agent in the second film, since the magical blood pact prevents him from acting directly.
Unfortunately for Dumbledore, Grindelwald has already discovered a loophole. While the same blood pact keeps Grindelwald from attacking Dumbledore, it doesn’t prevent anyone else from taking up arms against his former lover. To that end, Grindelwald told the incredibly powerful wizard, Corvus, that he is actually Dumbledore’s long-lost brother, Aurelius Dumbledore. This may be a simple, yet effective ploy to convince Corvus to kill Dumbledore before he can become a bigger threat to Grindelwald’s plans.
There’s a showdown coming, but we will have to wait until April 15, 2022, to see which wizard will emerge victorious.
