Jude Law: Is Fantastic Beasts Dead? The Harry Potter TV Series Might Be the Reason!
Jude Law Says Goodbye to Dumbledore (For Now!)
Get ready, Potterheads! Jude Law, who played a young Albus Dumbledore in the Fantastic Beasts films, isn't so sure if those magical adventures will continue, especially with Warner Bros. launching a new Harry Potter TV series! In a recent Variety cover story, Law said that the future of Fantastic Beasts looks pretty dim; indicating it might be on indefinite hold.
According to Law: “My guess would be that, now that they’re doing ‘Harry Potter’ as a TV show, they’ll probably put their energy into that. I certainly haven’t heard that there’s anything on the horizon.” That sounds pretty definitive. It implies a redirection of efforts and resources into that other more potentially lucrative project. A fair decision, given those declining returns across multiple films.
Fantastic Beasts: A Box Office Struggle
The Fantastic Beasts franchise, planned as a five-film series by J.K. Rowling itself, started with a bang! “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” (2016) made a whopping $814 million worldwide. That was awesome! But the sequels, “The Crimes of Grindelwald” (2018) and “The Secrets of Dumbledore” (2022) only made $654 million and $407 million, respectively. The critical response also dropped.
Even Eddie Redmayne (Newt Scamander) thinks the franchise has wrapped up; in an interview with ComicBook.com, he expressed doubt about continuing beyond what's been created so far.
Dumbledore's Dark Secrets: Law's Insightful Take on the Iconic Wizard
Law also discussed his time portraying Dumbledore, sharing those deep insights into Rowling’s notes that provided immense character detail; demonstrating that just being the same as what was previously presented wasn't a necessity; it's going deeper! And this demonstrates exactly the kinds of efforts Rowling herself went through during the time she spent creating those initial books and then its film adaptions.
A pivotal detail included a specific insight that the great wizard Dumbledore viewed himself as a monster. This provided important insights on his complexity; the impact of that deep and conflicted past; his guilt over trusting his feelings that led to the tragedy of his sister’s death and a falling out with Grindelwald. That deep conflict profoundly affected the events depicted across Fantastic Beasts, and gives the kind of detail that could've easily gone missing without a deep understanding that came through from working directly with the creator herself.
The Harry Potter TV Series: A New Era for the Wizarding World?
While Fantastic Beasts might be fading, the wizarding world isn't going anywhere! Warner Bros. announced the huge plan to start filming for an open casting call (which is planned to last till October 31, 2023) of kids ages 9-11 for Harry, Hermione, and Ron; further highlighting the importance and the intent toward starting production for the new show, something expected to come sometime between late 2026 and early 2027.
Casting details emphasize that a video is needed. This highlights the important, necessary effort from both Warner Bros and its executive team regarding casting, highlighting some important efforts and requirements in that casting selection process and also emphasizing why this might involve different actors. This contrasts the prior cast selection for those original Harry Potter movies. It seems Warner Bros is pulling out all the stops!
Conclusion: The Magic Might Shift, but the Wizarding World Lives On!
Law’s comments indicate Fantastic Beasts’ fate; its uncertain future implies the cancellation of this entire series due to its financial struggles. The impending Harry Potter TV Series shifts everything, re-allocating that time and focus onto this entirely separate series and suggests great things in that new approach toward delivering Harry Potter narratives to newer generations! Whether fans liked the Fantastic Beasts series, they gave a pretty important experience for some audiences who only knew Dumbledore in the earlier cast, presenting the opportunity to reimagine the early life of one of the series’ greatest characters for an entire new generation.
