Warner Bros. has released the first trailer for the Harry Potter spinoff Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Directed by Deathly Hallows helmer David Yates and scripted by J.K. Rowling, the film takes place in 1926 New York City, where magizoologist Newt Scamander (played by Oscar-winner Eddie Redmayne) finds himself running up against magicians in hiding and a government on its toes after part of his collection of some of the world’s most spectacular magical creatures escapes on the streets of New York.
The trailer doesn't give us a real sense of what Yates is doing in terms of his aesthetic, which was a major selling point for his final run of Harry Potter films, but it definitely does its job in teasing anticipation for the Harry Potter spin-off. Among the ample cast of the film, we only get a clear look at Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, and Carmen Ejogo, the last of which is decked out in a wardrobe that Elizabeth Banks' Hunger Games character would likely purchase. Very little of the plot is divulged here, which is for the better, and they essentially just reiterate the basic premise: that Scamander's fantastic beasts have been released and there's a hunt for them underway by both magicians and government officials. For the rest of what will be coming, we'll have to wait until November 2016, as the trailer so nicely points out.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them also stars Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Samantha Morton, Jon Voight, Ron Perlman, Jenn Murray, Faith Wood-Blagrove, and Colin Farrell. Fantastic Beasts opens in 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D on November 18, 2016. Watch the first trailer for the film right below:
Here's the official synopsis for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them:
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” opens in 1926 as Newt Scamander has just completed a global excursion to find and document an extraordinary array of magical creatures. Arriving in New York for a brief stopover, he might have come and gone without incident…were it not for a No-Maj (American for Muggle) named Jacob, a misplaced magical case, and the escape of some of Newt’s fantastic beasts, which could spell trouble for both the wizarding and No-Maj worlds.
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” is an all-new adventure returning us to the wizarding world created by J.K. Rowling.
Academy Award winner Eddie Redmayne (“The Theory of Everything”) stars in the central role of wizarding world magizoologist Newt Scamander, under the direction of David Yates, who helmed the last four “Harry Potter” blockbusters.
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” opens in 1926 as Newt Scamander has just completed a global excursion to find and document an extraordinary array of magical creatures. Arriving in New York for a brief stopover, he might have come and gone without incident…were it not for a No-Maj (American for Muggle) named Jacob, a misplaced magical case, and the escape of some of Newt’s fantastic beasts, which could spell trouble for both the wizarding and No-Maj worlds.
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” also stars Katherine Waterston (“Steve Jobs,” “Inherent Vice”) as Tina; Tony Award winner Dan Fogler (“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”) as Jacob; Alison Sudol (“Dig,” “Transparent”) as Tina’s sister, Queenie; Ezra Miller (“Trainwreck”) as Credence; two-time Oscar nominee Samantha Morton (“In America,” “Sweet and Lowdown”) as Mary Lou; Oscar winner Jon Voight (“Coming Home,” TV’s “Ray Donovan”) as Henry Shaw, Sr.; Ron Perlman (the “Hellboy” films) as Gnarlack; Carmen Ejogo (“Selma”) as Seraphina; Jenn Murray (“Brooklyn”) as Chastity; young newcomer Faith Wood-Blagrove as Modesty; and Colin Farrell (“True Detective”) as Percival Graves.
The film marks the screenwriting debut of J.K. Rowling, whose beloved Harry Potter books were adapted into the top-grossing film franchise of all time. Her script was inspired by the Hogwarts textbook Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, written by her character Newt Scamander.
The film reunites a number of people from the “Harry Potter” features, including producers David Heyman, J.K. Rowling, Steve Kloves and Lionel Wigram.
Collaborating with Yates behind the scenes are: Oscar-winning director of photography Philippe Rousselot (“A River Runs Through It,” the “Sherlock Holmes” movies), three-time Oscar-winning production designer Stuart Craig (“The English Patient,” “Dangerous Liaisons,” “Gandhi,” the “Harry Potter” films), three-time Oscar-winning costume designer Colleen Atwood (“Chicago,” “Memoirs of a Geisha,” “Alice in Wonderland”), Oscar-winning visual effects supervisor Tim Burke (“Gladiator,” the “Harry Potter” films), Oscar-nominated visual effects supervisor Christian Manz (“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1”), and Yates’ longtime editor Mark Day (the last four “Harry Potter” films).
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” is being filmed at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, which was home to the “Harry Potter” films for a decade. Some scenes were also shot on location in Liverpool, England.
Warner Bros. Pictures has slated “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” for worldwide release in 2D and 3D in select theatres and IMAX on November 18, 2016.