50 Fun Facts About Fantastic Beasts

Who plays Newt Scamander?

Eddie Redmayne plays Newt Scamander in all three films; he was cast in 2015, months after winning the Best Actor Oscar for The Theory of Everything.

In what year does the first Fantastic Beasts film take place?

The first film is set in late 1926, when Newt arrives in New York; the sequel picks up in 1927 with Grindelwald's escape.

For which charity was the original Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them book written in 2001?

Rowling wrote Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in 2001 for Comic Relief, alongside Quidditch Through the Ages, under the pen name Newt Scamander.

The first film marked whose debut as a screenwriter?

J.K. Rowling made her screenwriting debut with the first film; Steve Kloves, who adapted the Potter books, joined her as co-writer only on the third.

What is the American wizarding word for a non-magical person?

No-Maj, short for 'no magic', is the American term for a Muggle; Rappaport's Law barred US wizards from befriending or marrying them, which complicates Queenie and Jacob.

Which creature escapes Newt's suitcase in the bank and starts all the trouble?

The Niffler, a mole-like creature obsessed with shiny things, escapes into the bank; chasing it, Newt collides with Jacob Kowalski and the two swap suitcases.

What is Jacob Kowalski's dream job?

Jacob Kowalski dreams of being a baker and is refused a bank loan for his shop the same day he meets Newt; by the end he has opened the bakery.

What does the acronym MACUSA stand for?

MACUSA stands for the Magical Congress of the United States of America, the wizarding government headquartered inside New York's Woolworth Building.

What is Tina's full first name?

Tina's full name is Porpentina Goldstein; played by Katherine Waterston, she was demoted from Auror for attacking Mary Lou Barebone in defence of Credence.

What magical ability does Queenie Goldstein have?

Alison Sudol plays the mind-reading younger sister who falls for Jacob.

What is an Obscurial?

Those afflicted rarely live past ten; Credence survives to adulthood only because his magic is so strong.

What is the name of the anti-witch group led by Mary Lou Barebone?

The New Salem Philanthropic Society, whose followers are nicknamed Second-Salemers, campaigns to expose witches from its derelict church, where Mary Lou raises Credence, Chastity and Modesty.

Which actor plays Percival Graves, the MACUSA official who turns out to be Grindelwald in disguise?

Colin Farrell plays Percival Graves, MACUSA's Director of Magical Security, until a Revelio charm exposes him as Grindelwald, briefly shown as Johnny Depp.

Who plays Seraphina Picquery, the President of MACUSA?

Carmen Ejogo plays Seraphina Picquery, MACUSA's president, who orders Credence's Obscurus destroyed; Gemma Chan appears as the Chinese ambassador Madam Ya Zhou.

What is the name of the goblin gangster, voiced by Ron Perlman, who runs the speakeasy the Blind Pig?

Gnarlak, a goblin gangster played by Ron Perlman through motion capture, runs the Blind Pig speakeasy and sells Newt the Demiguise's whereabouts before tipping off MACUSA.

How is New York's memory of the magical chaos wiped at the end of the first film?

Wizards are immune to the extract and repair the damage while the city forgets.

Which Academy Award did the first film win, the first Oscar for any Wizarding World movie?

Colleen Atwood won Best Costume Design at the 89th Academy Awards for the film's 1920s wardrobe, the franchise's first Oscar after eight Potter films went without.

How much did the first Fantastic Beasts film gross worldwide?

The first film grossed about $814 million worldwide on a $175 million budget, finishing as the eighth-highest-grossing film of 2016.

Which English city stood in for 1920s New York during filming?

Liverpool's Cunard Building and St George's Hall were dressed as 1920s New York for the shoot, which otherwise took place at Leavesden Studios.

How many films was the series announced to run to in October 2016?

In October 2016 Rowling announced the series would run to five films, though only three had been released by 2022's The Secrets of Dumbledore.

Which Hogwarts house was Newt Scamander sorted into?

Newt was a Hufflepuff and wears the house scarf in the first film; he was expelled after taking the blame for his Slytherin friend Leta Lestrange's dangerous Jarvey experiment.

During the First World War, Newt worked on a secret Ministry programme involving what?

Newt tells the Ministry he worked mostly with Ukrainian Ironbelly dragons on the Eastern Front during the First World War; his mother, by contrast, bred hippogriffs.

In what year was Newt Scamander born?

Newt Scamander was born on 24 February 1897, making him 29 when he lands in New York in late 1926.

In which city is most of The Crimes of Grindelwald set?

Most of The Crimes of Grindelwald unfolds in 1927 Paris, from the Circus Arcanus to Grindelwald's Père Lachaise rally, and the film held its world premiere in Paris.

Who plays the young Albus Dumbledore in the second and third films?

Jude Law plays Albus Dumbledore, then Hogwarts' Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, in The Crimes of Grindelwald and The Secrets of Dumbledore.

Who plays Newt's brother Theseus, an Auror engaged to Leta Lestrange?

Callum Turner plays Theseus Scamander, a war-hero Auror; the Ministry offers Newt his travel ban lifted if he joins Theseus in hunting Credence.

Which future Voldemort companion appears in The Crimes of Grindelwald as a cursed circus performer?

Nagini, played by Claudia Kim, is a Maledictus doomed to become a snake permanently; she flees the Circus Arcanus with Credence.

What kind of vow has Yusuf Kama made regarding Corvus Lestrange V?

Yusuf Kama swore an Unbreakable Vow to his dying father to kill Corvus Lestrange V, avenging his mother Laurena, whom Corvus Lestrange IV abducted under the Imperius Curse.

How did Leta Lestrange unintentionally cause the death of her half-brother Corvus?

Unable to bear his crying, she switched him with Credence; the boy she swapped drowned.

What does Newt's light-fingered creature steal from Grindelwald that Newt gives Dumbledore in the second film?

The pact stops the two men from duelling each other; Dumbledore believes it can be destroyed.

What name does Grindelwald tell Credence is his true identity at the end of The Crimes of Grindelwald?

Grindelwald tells Credence he is Aurelius Dumbledore, hands him a wand at Nurmengard and points to the phoenix that has come to him as proof of Dumbledore blood.

Which immortal alchemist helps put out Grindelwald's blue fire in Paris?

He is the same Flamel whose Philosopher's Stone Harry protects decades later.

Which actor replaced Johnny Depp as Grindelwald for The Secrets of Dumbledore?

Mads Mikkelsen took over Grindelwald after Johnny Depp, who had shot one scene, was asked to resign in November 2020 on losing his libel case against The Sun.

Which creature that senses purity of heart chooses the head of the International Confederation of Wizards?

The qilin, a deer-like Chinese creature that bows to the pure of heart, chooses the ICW's leader; Grindelwald kills one newborn and reanimates it to rig the vote.

In which country is the wizarding election held at the climax of The Secrets of Dumbledore?

The election takes place in Bhutan, high in the Himalayas, where the candidates walk before the qilin; the team carry identical suitcases so Grindelwald cannot tell which holds the real one.

Who wins the ICW election at the end of The Secrets of Dumbledore?

The qilin bows to Vicência Santos, the Brazilian candidate, and she becomes head of the ICW after Grindelwald's reanimated qilin is exposed.

Who is Credence finally revealed to be in the third film?

Credence is Aberforth Dumbledore's illegitimate son, sent away as a baby, making him Albus's nephew rather than the brother Grindelwald had claimed.

Which school does Lally Hicks, played by Jessica Williams, teach Charms at?

Lally Hicks teaches Charms at Ilvermorny, the American wizarding school in Massachusetts; she recruits Jacob at his New York bakery for Dumbledore's team.

What is the name of the German wizarding prison where Theseus is held in Berlin?

Theseus is held in Erkstag, the German Ministry's prison beneath Berlin, where Newt frees him by mimicking the sideways scuttle of baby manticores.

How does The Secrets of Dumbledore end for Jacob and Queenie?

The film grossed just over $407 million, the lowest of any Wizarding World movie.

Who directed all three Fantastic Beasts films?

David Yates, who had directed the last four Harry Potter films, helmed all three Fantastic Beasts instalments, released in 2016, 2018 and 2022.

Who composed the score for the first Fantastic Beasts film?

James Newton Howard scored the first film, opening it with a nod to John Williams' 'Hedwig's Theme'; he returned for both sequels.

Which actor was reportedly in talks to play Jacob Kowalski before Dan Fogler was cast?

Michael Cera was reported in 2015 to be in early talks for Jacob Kowalski; the part went to Dan Fogler, who played the No-Maj baker in all three films.

In which Chinese city does Newt deliver a magical creature's twins at the start of the third film?

The third film opens in Kweilin (Guilin), China, where Newt delivers qilin twins; Credence's raid kills the mother and takes one newborn, while Newt hides the second.

What bursts out of the decoy suitcases seized by Grindelwald's followers in the third film?

The decoy cases unleash Quidditch balls, fanged books and pastries on Grindelwald's acolytes; the team carried identical cases so nobody could tell which held the surviving qilin.

Which everyday object does Newt give Theseus that later works as a portkey to Hogwarts?

Jacob gets a fake wand and Lally gets a book in the same hand-out, each item part of Dumbledore's plan to confuse Grindelwald's seers.

Roughly how much did The Crimes of Grindelwald gross worldwide, on a $200M budget?

It was the tenth highest-grossing film of 2018 yet still the franchise's lowest earner until its own sequel took that title in 2022.

Who acquits Grindelwald of all charges in Berlin, allowing him to run for head of the ICW?

Vogel is the outgoing Supreme Head of the International Confederation of Wizards, and the election becomes a three-way race.

What does Newt secretly give Jacob as capital to open his own business at the end of the first film?

Newt leaves Jacob a case of silver Occamy eggshells, worth a fortune, as collateral for the bakery loan the bank had refused him; the shop's pastries mimic Newt's beasts.

Which actress plays Mary Lou Barebone, leader of the Second-Salemers?

Samantha Morton plays Mary Lou Barebone, the fanatical Second-Salemer whom Credence's Obscurus kills; Faith Wood-Blagrove, found at an open casting call, plays her daughter Modesty.