The decision to recast Fantastic Beasts villain Gellert Grindelwald for Fantastic Beasts 3 has been a volatile one, and while many fans are unhappy with the principle of replacing Johnny Depp, the choice of Hannibal star Mads Mikkelsen is an undeniably inspired one. Putting the drama to one side, many are wondering how Mikkelsen will be introduced, and now, returning Fantastic Beasts star Katherine Waterston has offered some surprising insight, revealing that she will share no scenes with the actor in the upcoming sequel.
“You know, I hung out with Mads in Venice. We were there at the same time this summer and I’d never met him before and I had a great time with him. He’s totally lovely. But that was before he was cast – I think that’s right – I think it was just before he was cast and we don’t have anything together in the film so I don’t know what it’s like to work with him unfortunately, but maybe someday we will.”
It seems very strange that Waterston’s witch and former Auror, Porpentina Goldstein, won’t share any screen time alongside Mikkelsen’s villain, especially considering that 2018’s Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald ended with her sister, Queenie (Alison Sudol) switching to Grindelwald’s side in the hopes that this will enable her to continue her relationship with No-Maj Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler) in peace.
Fans of the Fantastic Beasts franchise were shocked to hear that Johnny Depp had been asked by Warner Bros. to step down from the role of the central villain. The intention had always been for Depp to play the role throughout the rest of the series, but this changed when the actor lost a libel lawsuit against a British tabloid. Mads Mikkelsen was quickly rumored for the role before being officially confirmed as Depp’s replacement.
Production on Fantastic Beasts 3 was recently halted, with Warner Bros. forced to pause filming on the upcoming wizarding world sequel in accordance with health and safety regulations that have been put in place amid the current global circumstances. Filming has been underway in the United Kingdom, with production now likely to be shut down for at least two weeks.
While plot details for Fantastic Beasts 3 remain tightly under wraps, it will no doubt continue to build up to World War II and the wizarding war that runs parallel. There are plans in place to make up to 5 movies in the franchise, with Katherine Waterston revealing that director David Yates will helm all of them. “I think he is meant to direct them all,” the actress revealed. “I think it’s very interesting. He’s worked very closely with [franchise creator] J.K. Rowling for a long time and very few people have access to her because she’s quite insulated and so I can’t really imagine how it could work any other way frankly.”
Fantastic Beasts 3 stars Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander, Jude Law as Dumbledore, Mads Mikkelsen as Gellert Grindelwald, Ezra Miller as Credence, Alison Sudol as Queenie Goldstein, Dan Fogler as Jacob Kowalski, and Katherine Waterston as Tina Goldstein. Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling is penning the screenplay alongside Steve Kloves, with returning director David Yates at the helm. There is no word on whether this delay will cause the movie’s release date to be pushed back, so for now, Fantastic Beasts 3 is due to hit theaters on July 15th, 2022. This comes to us from Collider.