When the last Harry Potter film premiered, J. K. Rowling said “The stories we love best do live in us forever… Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.” These words rang true for many Potterheads this week with the new teaser trailer of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. With the incantation, ‘lumos maxima!’ many fans were brought back to the wizarding world.
I remember going to watch the first Harry Potter film. I was only a little girl, holding my father’s hand, waiting in line for the film to start. I remember seeing the book come to life and being so amazed at the magic happening right in front of my eyes. I remember growing up with Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ronald Weasley alongside me. Midnight releases and buying Harry Potter merchandise became a ritual that my parents accepted with ease. I remember crying when I didn’t get my Hogwarts’ letter when I turned 11. I remember when Pottermore launched in 2011. I surprisingly became a member of the Slytherin house and my online sorting impacted me deeply, seriously making me question who I was as an individual (it was my angsty teen years, okay?). I remember the last book and the last film. I cried over Fred Weasley’s death, was in pain when Harry met Dumbledore at King’s Cross Station, and rejoiced when Harry finally beat Voldemort.
For me, Harry Potter was an experience that will never be forgotten. It isn’t just me, though. Many fans all over the world were immersed into the wizarding world of Harry Potter, with sales of books and films breaking record after record. Generations grew up with Harry Potter, so it comes with no surprise that once it was all over, fans around the world—including myself—were devastated. The Harry Potter franchise lasted 10 years, but it felt like much more like a lifetime. Nothing could compare to Harry Potter for the children who grew up with it. Doctor Who, Star Trek, and Star Wars were also big franchises with cult followings, but for my generation, Harry Potter was the one. Since Harry's last days in Hogwarts, fans have always wanted more, and finally with Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the moment we Potterheads have all been waiting for has arrived at last.
While the film appears to not include Harry Potter himself, some familiar names do arise. The protagonist, magizoologist Newt Scamander, is the grandfather of Rolf Scamander, Luna Lovegood’s husband. Although the trailer does not answer many questions, the premise of the film is that several of Newt Scamander’s magical creatures have escaped in New York City. According to Pottermore, the American Ministry of Magic is notified. The film incorporates magic in an American setting, which has many fans wondering how American magic will differ from British magic. Furthermore, the film begs questions such as what magical creatures are lost? How can these creatures fit into a suitcase? (Oh wait, is it a magically expandable suitcase on the inside?) It couldn't possibly be a Hippogriff, but could it be Cornish Pixies?
With so many questions and such little answers, the waiting game is one nostalgically familiar to the Harry Potter fandom. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is set to release on November 2016, which leaves plenty of room for new Potterheads to rise and the old to eagerly await the return of magic into our lives.
