Harry Potter truly is The Fandom That Lived. It's been almost twenty years since J.K. Rowling introduced readers to the young boy under the stairs in "Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone" and Potter mania has grown larger than anyone could ever have predicted, becoming a permanent cultural force. From packed midnight book release parties to a multi-billion dollar Oscar-winning film series and the opening of two Harry Potter theme parks, there is hardly anyone alive who isn't familiar with the boy with the lightning scar.
This past year alone has seen the release of a new two-part Potter play, "Harry Potter and The Cursed Child" on the West End and of course the most recent addition to the Potter legacy: "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" which opened in theaters on November 18, 2016.
Loosely based on a short guide book Rowling wrote for charity back in 2001, Fantastic Beasts takes place in the same magical HP universe but follows an entirely new cast of characters, most notably Newt Scamander, an eccentric magical-creature expert played magnificently by Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne. The film's debut dominated the box-office this weekend, earning an impressive $75 million from new and old fans eager to discover Rowling's latest project.
And now it looks like we can expect an entirely new set of spinoffs that are projected to take Potter into a whole new decade!
Last month, J.K. Rowling announced plans to write four more screenplays in the "Fantastic Beasts" franchise, a decision later confirmed by the film's director, David Yates who told The Telegraph,
"I was just sad at the prospect of not getting to play again in that beautiful universe Jo had conjured…it seems inevitable we’d look for a way of revisiting Jo’s wizarding world. After all, there was still so much magic left to explore."
The full five-part film series will cover 19 years of wizarding history, beginning in 1926 New York and concluding in 1945. That particular endpoint holds significance for hardcore Potter fans who may remember that 1945 marks the legendary final duel between Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald that ended the First Wizarding War.
Grindelwald's reign of terror over Europe served as the historical backdrop for "Fantastic Beasts" and the shocking reveal that (spoiler!!!) the dark wizard (played by Johnny Depp) managed to infiltrate the American magical government left audiences eagerly awaiting the next installment.
The fact that such a high-profile actor was cast as Grindlewald practically guarantees that he will be a constant, menacing presence throughout the rest of the series.
This news is incredibly exciting to readers hoping to delve more into the mysterious and elusive backstory of Dumbledore, whose own legacy is deeply entwined with Grindlewald's.
Especially with Rowling's post-book revelation that Dumbledore held romantic feelings for Grindelwald, Rowling has a ton of emotional material to work with for the four sequels that she wasn't able to fully explore while completing Harry's story.
Although Rita Skeeter's memoir in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" vaguely touched on how the Grindelwald/Dumbledore friendship became a bitter rivalry, it will be fascinating to gain more specific insight into just how Dumbledore's own evolving mortality and family tragedy drove him to abandon the quest for The Greater Good and eventually become one of the most iconic Harry Potter characters of all time.
The future Hogwarts headmaster does get briefly name dropped by Newt in "Fantastic Beasts" as the Hogwarts professor who argued against his expulsion from Hogwarts, but it's not until the second film that Dumbledore will appear in person. According to the flashbacks in "Chamber of Secrets"and "Half Blood Prince," we should currently expect to see Dumbledore fulfilling the role of Hogwart's newest Transfiguration teacher. (Bonus: the recently-announced extended timeline means that a young Minerva McGonagall could also make an appearance!
Fans should also look forward to seeing Newt embrace the role of a traveler, extending Rowling's world to a whole new international scale.The current word from executives is that each subsequent film will be set in a different city, with the upcoming sequel rumored to take place in Paris. Perhaps that means Beauxbatons (alma mater to the very French Fleur Delacour) will play a role in the war as well. It seems very likely that since Grindlewald himself attended Durmstrang, that the films will also expand to feature Germany as well.
No matter what happens, the one thing we can all be certain of, is that we have tons more magic material to look forward to. Yates says he plans to spread the release of the subsequent four movies over the next eight years. So see you all at the Hogwarts Express in 2025!
