The Harry Potter universe will continue this April in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, and the Wizarding World could surely use a hero in its darkest hour. But since Harry won’t be born for several decades, the wizards will just have to make due with Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), the unlikely protagonist of the Fantastic Beasts films. Newt isn’t the most powerful wizard, but he may be one of the few who can stand up to Gellert Grindelwald.
And what of Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law)? Perhaps the second-most powerful wizard in the world is stuck on the sidelines because he was once Grindelwald’s lover. But that emotional connection isn’t the reason why Dumbledore can’t stop his ex. It’s because Dumbledore and Grindelwald shared a magical pact to never harm one another. Grindelwald has already found his workaround by convincing Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller) that he is Dumbledore’s lost brother Aurelius, and that he must kill Dumbledore in revenge. Fortunately, the new trailer suggests that Dumbledore may have found his release from the bond as well. And that means we will finally see Dumbledore take on Grindelwald directly.
One of the most intriguing aspects of the new Secrets of Dumbledore trailer is that Newt’s muggle friend, Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler), now has a wand of his own. The first two films have led us to believe that Jacob was simply an ordinary man. Perhaps he has finally found the magic within himself, with a little push from Dumbledore. Jacob could use some power, especially since the woman he loves, Queenie Goldstein (Alison Sudol), has joined Grindelwald’s cause.
Since Johnny Depp is no longer playing Grindelwald, Hannibal star Mads Mikkelsen has taken over the role going forward. Katherine Waterston also stars in the film as Tina Goldstein, with Callum Turner as Theseus Scamander, Jessica Williams as Professor Eulalie “Lally” Hicks, William Nadylam as Yusuf Kama, Poppy Corby-Tuech as Vinda Rosier, Victoria Yeates as Bunty, Richard Coyle as Aberforth Dumbledore, Maria Fernanda Cândido as Vicência Santos, Oliver Masucci as Anton Vogel, Fiona Glascott as Minerva McGonagall, Aleksandr Kuznetsov as Helmut, and Dave Wong as Liu Tao.
David Yates directed the film from a script by J. K. Rowling and Steve Kloves. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore will hit theaters on April 15.
