Big news for the Fantastic Beasts film series… Jude Law has been tapped to play Young Dumbledore, a gig that is expected to run through the next four films.
The news was first reported by Variety and quickly confirmed by Pottermore.
Law will star opposite Johnny Depp, who plays Grindelwald. Dumbledore will be teaming up with Newt to eventually defeat the evil wizard who the Hogwarts Professor develops romantic feelings for.
Said director David Yates, “Jude Law is a phenomenally talented actor whose work I’ve long admired and I’m looking forward to finally having the opportunity to work with him. I know he will brilliantly capture all the unexpected facets of Albus Dumbledore as J.K. Rowling reveals this very different time in his life.”
In making the announcement about Jude Law, Pottermore notes the following about Dumbledore:
[Fantastic Beasts 2] will show Dumbledore decades before he became Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
At this point in the story he is the wizarding school’s Transfiguration professor and a contemporary of Gellert Grindelwald – the Dark wizard we met in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, played by Johnny Depp.
In October, David Yates told SFX Magazine, “The scenes that Jo has written are lovely. The younger Dumbledore is delightful. He’s very mischievous and enormous fun and a bit of a political animal.”
Does this suggest Fantastic Beasts 2 will be bringing us back to Hogwarts?
The casting is critical as Dumbledore will be the most recognizable face from the Harry Potter world in the Fantastic Beasts series. Dumbledore was played by Richard Harris in Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets, and Michael Gambon from Prisoner of Azkaban onward.
Jude Law plays Watson opposite Robert Downey Jr. in the Sherlock film series. He’s also known for roles in The Talented Mr. Ripley, Contagion, and The Holiday (don’t @ me for including that last one). He recently starred in the HBO series The Young Pope.
Fantastic Beasts 2 is set to hit theaters November 2018.
We want to hear your thoughts on this topic!
Write a comment below or submit an article to Hypable.