J.K. Rowling Writing a ‘Harry Potter’ Spinoff Film
J.K. Rowling will be taking her talents to the big screen: The author will write her first-ever script for the upcoming movie Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the first in a new series of Harry Potter spinoffs, according to a post on Rowling’s Facebook page.
While the new movies are neither a prequel nor sequel to the Harry Potter series, the films are inspired by Harry Potter’s Hogwarts textbook of the same name. The fictional author of the book, Newt Scamander, will be featured in the movies as well.
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“I thought it was a fun idea, but the idea of seeing Newt Scamander, the supposed author of Fantastic Beasts, realized by another writer was difficult,” Rowling said. “Having lived for so long in my fictional universe, I feel very protective of it and I already knew a lot about Newt. As hardcore Harry Potter fans will know, I liked him so much that I even married his grandson, Rolf, to one of my favourite characters from the Harry Potter series, Luna Lovegood.”
Rowling went on to call the movie “an extension of the wizarding world,” adding it will be filled with laws and customs of a hidden magical society that will be familiar to fans of the books and movies. The only plot detail available Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was that Newt’s story will start in New York, 70 years before Harry Potter’s saga begins.
“I always said that I would only revisit the wizarding world if I had an idea that I was really excited about and this is it,” said Rowling.