Fantastic Beasts

This article is about the film series. For other uses, see Fantastic Beasts (disambiguation).

Fantastic Beasts
Fantastic Beasts logo as used in the films
Directed byDavid Yates
Screenplay byJ. K. Rowling
Steve Kloves
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyPhilippe Rousselot (1–2)
George Richmond (3)
Edited byMark Day
Music byJames Newton Howard
Production
companies
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release date
2016–2022 [1][2][3]
CountriesUnited Kingdom
United States
LanguageEnglish
BudgetTotal (3 films)
$575–600 million
Box officeTotal (3 films)
$1.865 billion[4]

Fantastic Beasts is a film series directed by David Yates and a spin-off prequel to the Harry Potter novel and film series. The series is distributed by Warner Bros. and consists of three fantasy films as of 2024, beginning with Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016), and following with Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022).[5][6] Following the 2001–11 Harry Potter film series, Fantastic Beasts marks the second film series in the Wizarding World shared universe media franchise.[7]

The series was mainly produced by David Heyman, and stars Eddie Redmayne as the leading character: Newt Scamander, with Jude Law portraying Albus Dumbledore and with Colin Farrell, Johnny Depp and Mads Mikkelsen (replacing Depp in the third film) all portraying the third leading character: main antagonist Gellert Grindelwald. Ezra Miller, Katherine Waterston, Alison Sudol, Dan Fogler, Victoria Yeates, Jessica Williams, Callum Turner, and Richard Coyle also star.[8] Rowling wrote the screenplays for each film, with Steve Kloves returning from the Harry Potter film series to co-write the third film (The Secrets of Dumbledore). Production has taken place over six years, with the main story arc following Dumbledore and his agents' quest to overcome Grindelwald, his lost love, as the First Wizarding War and Second World War approach.[9]

The Fantastic Beasts series has been commercially successful, having collectively grossed US$1.8 billion across three films so far. While the first film received positive reviews, the last two films have received mixed reviews, with many critics deeming the series to be inferior to the Harry Potter films.

  1. ^ "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 1 May 2022. 132m 40s.
  2. ^ "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  3. ^ "Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022)". Irish Film Classification Office. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  4. ^ "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Franchise Box Office History". The Numbers. Archived from the original on 20 January 2023. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  5. ^ "Fantasy – Live Action". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 2 September 2011. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
  6. ^ "Harry Potter". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
  7. ^ "Fantastic Beasts release shows the magic in brand reinvention". Campaignlive.co.uk. Archived from the original on 11 June 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
  8. ^ Dargis, Manohla; Scott, A. O. (15 July 2007). "Harry Potter and the Four Directors". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
  9. ^ "Harry Potter at Leavesden". WB Studio Tour. Archived from the original on 10 February 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2012.