With the release ofFantastic Beasts and Where to Find Themthis weekend, the wizarding world lives again. Warner Bros. mounted the herculean effort of adaptingJ.K. Rowling’s beloved book series back in 2001 withHarry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, but they couldn’t have known how deeply the franchise would evolve over time, and how iconic it would become. Indeed,Harry Potteris now one of the great cultural touchstones of modern history, and whenHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2was released in 2011, fans mourned the end of the franchise for good.
Of course, with something as valuable asHarry Potter, Warner Bros. wasn’t going to let it stay dormant for long. But the studio also has great respect for Rowling, the creator of the wizarding world, so when they first made contact with the author about an adaptation of the textbook forFantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, it turns out Rowling was already thinking of ways to expand the story of Newt Scamander into a feature film.
Rowling penned the screenplay forFantastic Beasts, and in doing so was able to create an entirely new corner of the wizarding world. There are striking differences between this film and theHarry Potterfranchise on account of both the setting (America) and time period (1920s). However, whileFantastic Beastsdoes a great job of setting itself apart as a solid franchise unto itself, therearenotable connections toHarry Potterto be found throughout the film. As such, we’ve culled together the major ones that are most particularly of note.
Warning, spoilers forFantastic Beastsfollow.
Dumbledore
Although Albus Dumbledore doesn’t appear inFantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, his shadow looms large. If you’ve read theFantastic Beastsbook, you know Dumbledore provides a glowing introduction to the textbook in which he praises Newt Scamander. And in the film, we learn that Newt was nearly thrown out of Hogwarts for endangering fellow students with a creature, but that Professor Dumbledore argued against his expulsion.
Dumbledore is clearly an ally of Newt’s and, it seems, one of his few friends, and wealsoknow that Dumbledore has a strong connection to Grindelwald (more on that in a bit). We already know that the producers are casting a young Dumbledore forFantastic Beasts 2, and that he’ll have scenes with Newt, so Dumbledore clearly has a part to play in theFantastic Beastsfranchise as a whole. And with this new franchise seemingly leading up to the famous battle between Dumbledore and Grindelwald in 1945, Newt, Tina, Queenie, and Jacob now have first-hand knowledge and experience in dealing with Grindelwald, so they may become active allies of Dumbledore’s before things come to a head.
Grindelwald
While Gellert Grindelwald appears only briefly inHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, in flashback form played byJamie Campbell-Bower, he appears to be the “Big Bad” of theFantastic Beastsfranchise.The history of Grindelwald, as revealed inDeathly Hallows, is closely tied to Dumbledore as he came across the future headmaster’s path while searching for the Elder Wand in Godric’s Hollow. Once he found it, a fight broke out between him, Albus, and Aberforth that ended in the death of the Dumbledores’ sister Ariana. Grindelwald made his escape while Albus and Aberforth were sullen over Ariana’s death, and it was determined that Grindelwald was simply using Dumbledore to help secure the Elder Wand for himself. Regardless, Rowling has said that Grindelwald was likely the love of Albus’ life, and the selfish charmer left him heartbroken.
There’s also a fascinating fan theory floating around that Ariana actually had an obscurus, which is based on direct passages fromDeathly Hallowsin which Rowling notes that Ariana wouldn’t use magic but “couldn’t control it,” adding that “it exploded out of her.” Could we be building to the revelation that Ariana had an obscurus all along, thus providing another major connection between Grindewald and Dumbledore? Given Grindelwald/Graves' fascination with the obscurus inFantastic Beastsit’s certainly possible.
Grindelwald is played byJohnny Deppin the film and, as revealed, is actuallyColin Farrell’s character Percival Graves. It’s unclear if Grindelwald was using polyjuice potion or some other spell to appear as Graves, but we come to find out he was deep undercover at MACUSA in an effort to spur chaos and bloodshed between magicians and humans. This chaos, Grindelwald argues, would finally put witches and wizards at the top of the food chain above muggles, and if many have to die in the process, it’s all for “the greater good.”
WhenFantastic Beastsbegins, Grindelwald’s reign of terror in Europe has abruptly come to an end as he has disappeared. At the end ofFantastic Beasts, he’s seen being imprisoned by MACUSA aurors, so we’ll have to see how long they’re able to hold him as the franchise continues.
The Deathly Hallows
The final big piece ofHarry Pottermythology that J.K. Rowling introduced in her last book, the Deathly Hallows, makes a return inFantastic Beasts. When Colin Farrell’s Graves (actually Grindelwald) givesEzra Miller’s Credence a necklace to touch to alert him to the whereabouts of the obscurus, the necklace turns out to be the now-famous Deathly Hallows symbol. Indeed, we know fromPotterlore that Grindelwald was obsessed with the Deathly Hallows, and while he only ever had in his possession the Elder Wand before he was captured, he spent considerable time seeking out the other two pieces of the puzzle. In futureFantastic Beastssequels, might we see Grindelwald’s quest for the Hallows continue? And might we find out where the Resurrection Stone and Cloak of Invisibility were during this time? In Rowling’s writings, she noted that the Invisibility Cloakwas always in the possession of the Potters, so we could even be on track to meet some of Harry Potter’s ancestors.
The Lestrange Family
There’s a moment late inFantastic Beastswhere Queenie notices a photograph of a young woman inside Newt’s suitcase. The actress isZoe Kravitz, who was a very late addition to theFantastic Beastscast, and while the character is never seen outside this photograph, from her name it’s clear she’s going to be a significant plot point moving forward. Indeed, this woman is Leta Lestrange, and upon hearing the name, Queenie notes that she’s heard odd things about the family. Lestrange is, of course, the last name of Bellatrix Lestrange,Harry Pottervillain and Voldemort confidant. Bellatrix’s maiden name was Black, cousin of Sirius Black, but she married Rodolphus Lestrange. It’s unclear how, exactly, Leta is related to the Lestrange family, but Rodolphus and his brother Rabastan were stalwart Death Eaters and servants of Voldemort in the First Wizarding War, which erupted in the 1970s. Therefore, Leta no doubt predates Rodolphus and Rabastan and may even be their mother. We’ll surely find out in futureFantastic Beastsmovies.
Spells, Scarves, and Schools
In addition to these larger connections to thePotteruniverse, there are a number of smaller references scattered throughout. For instance, when Newt first arrives in New York and is asked bySamantha Morton’s Mary Lou Barebone if he’s “a seeker”, he replies that he’s “more of a chaser, really.” So fear not, Quidditch fans, thereisa reference to the popularPottersport in here. Moreover, during the film’s opening sequence in which we fly through a bunch of newspapers—which, in a brilliant touch, have “older” technology in bringing them to life—there’s an article titled “Soccer: The No-Maj Quidditch?”
There are also, of course, the spells thatPotterfans now know by heart. Newt’s opening sequence in the bank alone features the unlocking spell “Alohamora”, the stunning spell “Petrificus Totalis”, and plenty of apparrating.
Fantastic Beastsalso features, albeit briefly, Minister of Magic Hector Fawley, who served the British office from 1925 to 1939. According to Rowling’s official history, he did not take Grindelwald’s threat seriously enough and was forced from office in 1939.
Hogwarts is referenced a couple of times in the film, not only in speaking about Newt’s near-expulsion, but also in one of the newspapers in the beginning where it’s noted that security at the school has increased due to Grindelwald’s attacks. Moreover, when Jacob asks at the end of the film if there are wizarding schools, Queenie asserts that the American school of Ilvermorny is the best, while Newt corrects her by saying Hogwarts is, in fact, the best wizarding school in the world.
And finally, as we know Newt Scamander is a Hufflepuff (really, truly 100% Hufflepuff, this guy), and while these sorting houses aren’t explicitly mentioned inFantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Newt is wearing a Hufflepuff scarf during his final scene in the movie, just before he boards the ocean liner back home to the U.K.
Did we miss anything? Are there any other majorHarryPotterconnections inFantastic Beasts? Sound off in the comments below.
