Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is in theaters now and it’s pretty good! J.K. Rowling‘s latest addition to the wizarding world she meticulously designed with her Harry Potter stories is slight but undeniably charming. While I’m still not sure how she and director David Yates plan to squeeze four more movies out of these characters, it felt good to be back in this familiar world, albeit in a different time period and an ocean away.
And now that the film is out and real people have had the chance to see it, Rowling took to Twitter to answer questions about the film and drop a few small hints about what to expect from future films.
Naturally, Rowling began the Q&A by noting that she wouldn’t be able to answer every question because she didn’t want to spoil future movies in the series.
I'm being asked so many good questions about story & characters in #FantasticBeasts. If I can't answer, it's bc we have 4 movies to go!
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 21, 2016
First, Rowling confirmed that yes, Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) is wearing a Hufflepuff house scarf at the end of the film. Even though he was expelled from Hogwarts, this means he can join Cedric Diggory on the very short list of “Hufflepuffs who actually matter in any way whatsoever.” As someone who was informed by the official Pottermore quiz that he belongs to Hufflepuff (a fact that chilled me to my very core), it’s nice to see that the most overlooked and most often mocked of the Hogwarts’ houses is getting some time to shine.
I can answer that one. Yes! https://t.co/R7eNoO3IWU
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 21, 2016
Rowling then addressed the question of why there needs to be five Fantastic Beasts movies, explaining that the overall story takes place over 20 years, from 1926 through 1945, and requires an entire series of movies to tell properly. As some Harry Potter fans may remember, 1945 was the year Albus Dumbledore dueled Gellert Grindelwald, ending the Global wizarding war. Since Grindelwald was introduced in the first movie and Dumbledore will join the story in the next film, we can probably guess where all of this is going…
Our story starts in 1926 and ends in 1945. It's just too big to fit in one movie! https://t.co/fb5GOGvTxq
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 21, 2016
And yes, Rowling acknowledges that this was originally going to be a trilogy before it grew too large. Although I enjoyed Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, this is where I have to cock an eyebrow. The movie is often fun in spite of itself, finding joy in its characters, world-building details, and diversions rather than its plotting. Hopefully, the first film is just the necessary table-setting and things will be a little more tightly plotted next time around.
.@lomadia We did say 3 before I did all the plotting, but then we decided that there's just too much story!
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 21, 2016
Is Frank the Thunderbird actually a Thunderbird and did he reach Arizona? Rowling has some good news on that front! For the record, the Thunderbird has a pretty important place in the American wizarding world, but you’ll have to look outside of the screen for those details.
Yes and yes! https://t.co/SF7rxMd42f
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 21, 2016
Will Alison Sudol’s Queenie Goldstein return in the next movie? Rowling replies in the affirmative. The big question now is whether or not she’ll drag Dan Fogler’s Jacob Kowalski back into the magical world with her.
Yes! https://t.co/rPexevTVUp
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 21, 2016
Since the Harry Potter movies made their fair share of divergences from the source material, should the Fantastic Beasts movies be considered part of the official (i.e., book) canon? Rowling says yes.
Yes, because I'm writing them! https://t.co/KLfJj1Kylo
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 21, 2016
And finally, one fan wondered why Newt is able to carry a wand, practice magic, and do work for the Ministry of Magic when he was expelled from Hogwarts, especially since Hagrid wasn’t afforded those liberties. Her response: there are four more movies.
All will become clear. Trust me. https://t.co/NwA12ZzgsA
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 21, 2016
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