Variety says the only thing that will save the Fantastic Beasts film franchise is a return to Hogwarts. Yes, fine, send the fantastic foursome and Grindelwald to Brazil, but make sure at least half the movie is with Jude Law at our favorite school of witchcraft and wizardry.
Rebecca Rubin writes in ‘Fantastic Beasts 3’: Can Warner Bros. Recapture ‘Harry Potter’ Magic? that the franchise was in serious trouble after Crimes of Grindelwald but that filmmakers know the way back to the first film’s resonance with Wizarding World faithful. the secret, according to one “box office analyst,” will be winning back the domestic audiences in the US and UK, which means ‘More Young Dumbledore.’
“The Crimes of Grindelwald” wasn’t exactly an embarrassment with $650 million in worldwide ticket sales, but it fell short of expectations and earned over $150 million less than its predecessor. What did become clear, however, was that just two films in, the “Fantastic Beasts” franchise was already starting to show signs of fatigue.
“I don’t think you can discount a movie that made $650 million, but there’s an issue any time a sequel drops that far from the original,” said Jeff Bock, a box office analyst with Exhibitor Relations. “We’ve seen what happens when a studio tries to put out a third movie in a franchise after the second didn’t do anything for audiences.”…
Part three is expected to put more of a spotlight on Jude Law’s young Albus Dumbledore and set more action at Hogwarts, with series stars Eddie Redmayne, Ezra Miller, Katherine Waterston and Dan Fogler also returning. While taking the series back to its Hogwarts roots, the third movie will also show how magic is explored in an entirely new location: Rio de Janeiro….
“If you look at what worked with ‘Crimes of Grindelwald, it was when they went back to Hogwarts. There were audible gasps from the audience,” Bock said. “People loved seeing Jude Law as Dumbledore. Hopefully J.K. and the writers realize just because the movie is set in Brazil doesn’t mean we can’t spend half the time at Hogwarts. There are things they could do to save the movie.”
Analyst Bock is excited about Steve Kloves’ return to screenwriting, albeit as an assistant to Rowling or partner rather than a writer who adapts her novels. I expect this means that the director wants the cuts made in the shooting script and rewrites for blockbuster formula all done before he gets to the shooting and retreats to the cutting room. From this view, Kloves will be adapting Rowling’s screenplays rather than her novel — and we’re even less likely to know the story as she conceived it.
Or I’m just making too much of one analyst’s opinions. What do you think?
Your worry is definitely my worry – that Kloves will change the story. Fans have expressed excitement for a person I don’t feel did a great job at adapting the novels into film with the HP series. I grit my teeth watching them and always wonder why I have used my time to watch something that only makes me think of the differences with the novels. Let’s hope this is a collaboration as Wizarding World is claiming rather than a re-write!
There’s hope.
Warner Brothers was going to make the FB movies with or without JKR. However, they want her imprimatur on Wizarding World projects to reassure the HP fans/customers.
That doesn’t mean there won’t sometime be Saturday morning cartoons of the Warner Brothers and their sister Dot at Hogwarts. But that’s not the FB movies.