'Fantastic Beasts' Sequel Will See Johnny Depp Play Gellert Grindelwald, Director David Yates Confirms

Details of Johnny Depp’s character in the sequel to ‘Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them’ have been confirmed, following the backlash that emerged when he was announced for the film.

Last week, it was revealed that the ‘Lone Ranger’ actor would play a small role in the ‘Fantastic Beasts’ film, which would be extended to a much bigger part in the upcoming sequel.

Fans of the ‘Harry Potter’ universe, in which ‘Fantastic Beasts’ is set, were quick to speculate that the role in question would be wizarding great Gellert Grindelwald, which has now been addressed by director David Yates.

Speaking to ‘Potter’ fansite The Leaky Cauldron, he said: “The whole principal of casting the movie was go with the best actor. Go for the most inspired, interesting, right fit for that character. And as we approached Grindelwald we thought, ‘Who’s going to take this in an interesting direction?’”

Appearing to address the controversy that arose when Johnny was reported for the film (his past few cinematic offerings haven’t exactly been critically acclaimed, lest we forget), David continued: “In this business, it’s a weird old business. You’re brilliant one week, people are saying odd things the next, you go up and down. But no one takes away your pure talent.

“Johnny Depp is a real artist. He’s created several characters who have really resonated in our popular culture. He’s a really brilliant, brilliant actor. We were excited about seeing what he would do with this guy, the character.

“He’s fearless; he’s imaginative; he’s ambitious. We thought he would do something fun and special. So we went for him, purely on that selfish basis. We don’t care if he’s famous or not famous. We just know he’s interesting.”

Eddie Redmayne takes on the lead role of Newt Scamander in the first ‘Fantastic Beasts’ film, scheduled for release on Friday 18 November, with the second instalment currently slated to hit cinemas in November 2020.