Fresh off of scoring a new release date, Fantastic Beasts 3 will officially be named The Secrets of Dumbledore. Harry Potter's story has come to an end, but his world lives on in the prequel series Fantastic Beasts. What first began in 2016 as a movie about magizoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) chasing fantastical creatures over New York City has grown to be an epic tale of the first major wizarding war. Fantastic Beasts 3 was once scheduled to arrive in theaters this fall, but major changes to the cast and production issues caused by the coronavirus pandemic pushed it to 2022.
Fantastic Beasts 3 is expected to pick up from 2018's The Crimes of Grindelwald, which saw dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald amass more followers and pull the powerful Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller) over to his side. As the entire Fantastic Beasts franchise is leading up to Grindelwald's infamous battle with Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law), the third film is expected to further lay the groundwork for that conflict. Fantastic Beasts 3 is especially notable because it will feature the debut of Mads Mikkelsen as Grindelwald; he's taking over the part from Johnny Depp, who was forced to step down last fall.
Following the news that Fantastic Beasts 3 will premiere over Easter weekend in 2022, Warner Bros. announced the official title for the movie: Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. It also shared the film's logo, which can be seen down below. Eagle-eyed fans will be able to spot a wand carved into the "D" of Dumbledore's name. The Elder Wand, perhaps?
With this title, it's clear Fantastic Beasts 3 is going all in on the controversial twist from The Crimes of Grindelwald. The 2018 film ended with the reveal that Credence is actually a long-lost Dumbledore brother named Aurelius. It was a plot point that took many fans by surprise, since the Harry Potter series only establishes three Dumbledore sibling: Albus, Aberforth, and the late Ariana. The title The Secrets of Dumbledore all but guarantees the movie will be exploring Albus' murky past and might also touch upon what happened with Ariana.
The Secrets of Dumbledore also hints that the Fantastic Beasts series is shifting even farther away from Newt. He will certainly continue to be a main character in the franchise, but as Dumbledore and Grindewald's legendary battle grows ever closer, he might drift towards the background. One has to hope that won't happen. There are two more movies on the way following The Secrets of Dumbledore, and they each have to cover a great deal of time. It could be that this installment focuses so heavily on Dumbledore because the others will return to Newt. Right now, everything is speculation, but at least fans now have another key piece of the puzzle in this official title.
Source: Warner Bros.
