JK Rowling and Warner Bros. Announce New Set of Wizarding Movies Based in Potterland

I am a huge Potter fan. While I'm far from considering myself the end all be all Potterhead (I mean, seriously, have you seen some of those die hard Potter fans?), I've loved the series dearly since the books were first released (atleast here in America) and I was very sad to see them leave not only the bookshelves, but even the theaters a few years ago. We always had a feeling that Rowling would return to the magical world that she painstakingly created over the course of 17 years, and sure enough, she released news that she most definitely is. 

According to EW, JK Rowling and Warner Bros. have announced that she will adapt her Hogwarts textbook Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them into a full length film about the books author Newt Scamander. This will not only be a deeper look into the wizarding world, but it will also be Rowling's first-ever screenplay and it's expected to be the first of a series. This could be really cool, as Newt was not only the author of the textbook, but he was a world class magizoologist and headmaster to Hogwarts. Also, this film is said to take place in New York City, which is extremely exciting to me as I've always wondered what American wizards were like.

Here's what Rowling has to say about it: "It all started when Warner Bros. came to me with the suggestion of turning Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them into a film. 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. Having lived for so long in my fictional universe, I feel very protective of it and I already knew a lot about Newt. As hard-core 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. As I considered Warners’ proposal, an idea took shape that I couldn’t dislodge. That is how I ended up pitching my own idea for a film to Warner Bros. Although it will be set in the worldwide community of witches and wizards where I was so happy for 17 years, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is neither a prequel nor a sequel to the Harry Potter series, but an extension of the wizarding world. The laws and customs of the hidden magical society will be familiar to anyone who has read the Harry Potter books or seen the films, but Newt’s story will start in New York, 70 years before Harry’s gets underway. I particularly want to thank Kevin Tsujihara of Warner Bros. for his support in this project, which would not have happened without him. 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." 

So, stoked!

- Rg Lovecraft