Dumbledore’s Phoenix Arrives At Hogwarts In Fantastic Beasts 3 Poster

A new poster for Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore shows Dumbledore’s phoenix arriving at Hogwarts. Seeking to once again capture the magic of the original Harry Potter series, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them introduced audiences to a new wizard in the form of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) in 2016. The sequel, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald marked a noticeable dip in quality from the first film (and in box office performance) but does set up an epic showdown between team Dumbledore and team Grindelwald.

The Secrets of Dumbledore, which was originally supposed to start filming in early 2020, had to postpone filming until September of 2020 and is currently set to release in April of next year. After intensifying controversy surrounding Johnny Depp’s continued involvement in the franchise despite his domestic abuse allegations, the role of Grindelwald was recast for The Secrets of Dumbledore. The first trailer for the film was released last week, promising a heartfelt return to Hogwarts and an all-new Grindelwald played by Casino Royale‘s Mads Mikkelsen. Jude Law will be returning as Dumbledore, with stars Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller, and Dan Fogler also returning.

In a new poster shared on the official Fantastic Beasts Twitter by Warner Bros., Dumbledore’s phoenix, Fawkes, can be seen flying to Hogwarts as the sun peeks out from behind the school’s iconic spires. While the poster doesn’t give too much away, it does hint that things audiences have seen before in the Harry Potter franchise will be playing important roles this time around. Check out the poster below:

The new poster, which features the tagline “Return to the magic,” essentially reaffirms what the film’s trailer has already hinted at: that The Secrets of Dumbledore will feature a number of throwbacks to the original Harry Potter franchise. While Fawkes did not appear in every Harry Potter movie, he did feature prominently in The Chamber of Secrets and was instrumental in helping Harry defeat the basilisk.  Fawkes, being a phoenix, is immortal and is reborn from his own ashes after dying and bursting into flames, possibly hinting at what is to come for the Fantastic Beasts franchise, which is now expected to have at least two more installments following The Secrets of Dumbledore.

The purposeful featuring of Fawkes on the poster for The Secrets of Dumbledore could suggest, in addition to showing how Dumbeldore first encounters the phoenix, that the upcoming film is a rebirth of sorts for the franchise as a whole. With The Crimes of Grindelwald underperforming at the box office and carrying with it the weight of the controversy surrounding Depp, Warner Bros. may be positioning the new film as something of a fresh start, especially considering they seem to want to continue the franchise beyond The Secrets of Dumbledore. A fresh start, in this case, may mean harkening back to what so many fans loved about Harry Potter: Hogwarts and the fun, childlike wonder that comes with it. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is scheduled to release in theaters on April 15th, 2022.

Source: Warner Bros.

About The Author