While the release date for J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them sequel is far off, details about the film are already being teased by Warner Bros.
Through Fantastic Beasts’ official Instagram account, Warner Bros. released a set image of a storefront announcing the release of Newt Scamander’s first book, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. The image was accompanied with the caption, “A newly published author must have a book launch party. Newt Scamander has been busy.”
In the storefront announcement, the launch party for Newt’s book is planned for March 19th. Unfortunately, muggles are not invited, but we may catch a glimpse of Newt’s celebration in the Fantastic Beasts‘ sequel.
Since the image is a promotion for the Fantastic Beasts‘ sequel, fans can assume that the film may include this launch party as a transition from the first film to the second. It would be a great way to kick off the film, since it would be an easy way to introduce young Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) and Newt’s brother Theseus Scamander (Callum Turner), both of which are characters who would come celebrate Newt’s achievement.
This would also be the best opening to the sequel since the first Fantastic Beasts’ film followed Newt Scamander as he was finishing the nine-year-long research for this book, which was ordered in 1918 by Augustus Worme and finally published in 1927, one year after the first film took place. Newt’s book launch party would be a great closing to his first journey, allowing Newt to embark on whatever new adventure arises next.
Newt’s book is of pivotal importance in the Harry Potter universe since the students at Hogwarts are required to study Newt’s book and even Hagrid assigns it as the official textbook for Care of Magical Creatures. The set image also teased a possible return to Diagon Alley, since the storefront announcement states that Flourish and Blotts, the magical book store located in Diagon Alley, and Obscurus Books are jointly holding the launch party.
Not only does the image hint at some details for the sequel, but it also may confirm a fan theory about the returning character, Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller). It was assumed in the first Fantastic Beasts that Credence had been killed along with his Obscurus, but a deleted scene reveals that Credence is actually alive and leaves New York City.
One fan theory found on Reddit stated, “My theory is that Newt will save Credence from his Obscurus. Since Credence helped Mary Lou print all those flyers and pamphlets for the Second Salemers, I predict that he will go into publishing and publishes Newt’s book.”
After the recent set image was released, it seems this theory may be spot on. The name of Newt’s publisher, Obscurus Books, sounds a bit strange unless it is Credence’s publishing company that he named Obscurus Books to pay homage to him and Newt’s friendship.
While a lot of those plot details are mostly speculation, some details that have been confirmed include the list of actors cast for Fantastic Beasts 2, such as Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander, Katherine Waterston as Auror Tina Goldstein, Alison Sudol as Queenie Goldstein, and Dan Fogler as the outgoing no-maj Jacob Kowalski. Other actors who were present in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them who will be reprising their roles are Johnny Depp as Gellert Grindelwald and Ezra Miller as Credence Barebone.
In addition to the witches and wizards we’ve already met, Fantastic Beasts 2 will introduce new characters such as Leta Lestrange (Zoe Kravitz), the ancestor of Bellatrix Lestrange whose character has been shrouded in mystery, Torquil Travers (Derek Riddell), and an unnamed “young woman we first meet as a featured attraction at a wizarding circus” portrayed by Claudia Kim.
Characters introduced in the Harry Potter series will also be surfacing such as Albus Dumbledore, the creator of the Sorcerer’s Stone Nicolas Flamel (Brontis Jodorowsky), and the death eater Rosier (Poppy Corby-Tuech).
The next installment of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them will premiere in theaters on November 16th, 2018.
