"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them", the latest saga set in Harry Potter's wizarding world, is never at a loss when it comes movie updates. In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, David Heyman, producer of Fantastic Beasts, revealed that it "has the charm" of "Goblet of Fire", the fourth installment in the Harry Potter film franchise. Heyman mentioned Mike Newell, who directed Goblet of Fire and compared it to an Indian musical.
Obviously, Fantastic Beasts is anything but an Indian musical, but what Heyman was implying was that the spin-off contains elements of what made Goblet of Fire memorable, namely the offbeat humor that comes naturally and a majority can relate to. Heyman also referred to the film's director, David Yates' style, based on the last four Harry Potter films he directed, which focused on a way of storytelling that gave illuminating moments of humanity. He adds that aside from being funny and dark at the same time, Fantastic Beasts is also big on relatable human emotions.
In another article from Entertainment Weekly, Fantastic Beasts tells the adventures of enigmatic magizoologist Newt Scamander, played by Eddie Redmayne ("The Theory of Everything", "Les Miserables"). Newt is more confident around magical creatures than he is with fellow witches, wizards, and muggles.
The story is set in 1920s New York, where Scamander will embark on a quest and be joined by a cast of colorful characters like Porpertina "Tina" Goldstein, played by Katherine Waterston ("Steve Jobs", "Inherent Vice"), a sensible witch and ambitious employee at the Magical Congress of the United States of America (MACUSA). MACUSA is the American version of UK's Ministry of Magic. Queenie, Tina's younger sister, is a free-spirited witch and skilled "legilimens", one who can delve into the mind and memories of another person. She is played by American singer-songwriter Alison Sudol of A Fine Frenzy. Dan Fogler ("Don Peyote", "Hysterical Psycho") plays Jacob Kowalski, a factory worker who learns of the wizarding world through Newt. Kowalski is a "No-Maj"-the American term used for "Muggles". In the entire Harry Potter film franchise, he is the first Muggle main character.
Other characters include Graves, played by Colin Farrell ("In Bruges", "Miami Vice"). Graves is an expert auror and trusted right-hand man of the president in the American wizarding world. Samantha Morton ("The Messenger", "The Unloved") plays Mary Lou, leader of extreme fanatical group, Second Salemers, whose goal is to expose witches and wizards at all costs.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them also marks J.K. Rowling's screenplay writing debut. According to NME, when Rowling first revealed the concept of the film back in 2013, she said that elements of the spin-off would be familiar to fans of both the Harry Potter books and films, and that Fantastic Beasts is neither a prequel nor a sequel, but an independent story set in the wizarding world, 70 years before the events of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
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