Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them: new featurette lands

Eddie Redmayne in Fantastic Beasts

by Laura Hancock |
Published on

It's had the full trailer treatment, a new poster and some other magical bits and bobs. Now it's time for a featurette to apparate online and poke about behind the scenes of Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them. Step into J.K. Rowling’s wizarding realm for some new insights into magizoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne).

The shift from the secure walls of Hogwarts to the streets of New York will, it's clear, make this a more unpredictable ride. The society of '20s America is a minefield Newt has little understanding of – initially, at least – and its rules are practically tailor-made to confound him. The “backwards laws” about relations between magic people and Muggles ('No-Majs', as they're known in America), add to a vague air of xenophobia and intolerance. Could this movie be a surprise contender for the year's sharpest social commentary?

With Harry Potter And The Cursed Child causing Muggle mayhem in the West End, it’s only a matter of time until Redmayne and his creature-loving, magic-suitcase wielding magizoologist leave the entire world under Rowling's spell. Let's hope she's a benevolent ruler.

With Potter veteran David Yates directing a script conjured up by Rowling herself, the cast around Redmayne includes Katherine Waterston, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, Carmen Ejogo, Alison Sudol, Dan Fogler, Ron Perlman and Jon Voight.

Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them will be out in the UK on November 18. Head here for Empire's everything-you-need-to-know guide.

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