TheWrap brings word that Warner Bros. Pictures has narrowed down their top choices for several key roles in the upcoming trilogy, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.
Saoirse Ronan (The Grand Budapest Hotel, Hanna), Dakota Fanning (“The Twilight Saga”), Lili Simmons (“Banshee,” “True Detective”) and Alison Sudol (“Dig,” “Transparent”) are in contention for the role of Tina, with Kate Upton (The Other Woman), Katherine Waterston (Inherent Vice) and Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby) up for the role Tina’s older sister, Queenie. It’s unclear what role these characters will play in the film at this time.
Variety‘s Justin Kroll also chimed in on the casting, revealing (in addition to correcting the character names above) that there are three actors testing for the role of Jacob, the rival to the lead character Newt Scamander, including Steve Zissis (Her), Zack Pearlman (The Virginity Hit) and Dan Fogler (Fanboys).
The film, scheduled for a November 18, 2016 release, is inspired by Harry Potter’s Hogwarts textbook “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” and the adventures of the book’s fictitious author, Newt Scamander. Set in the wizarding world, the story will feature magical creatures and characters, some of which will be familiar to devoted Harry Potter fans. The laws and customs of the hidden magical society will be familiar to anyone who has read the Harry Potter books or seen the films, but Newt’s story will start in New York, seventy years before Harry’s gets underway.
Featuring a script by series creator J.K. Rowling, the film will star Eddie Redmayne and be directed by David Yates. The second and third “Fantastic Beasts” films are scheduled for release on November 16, 2018 and November 20, 2020.
(Photo credit: FayesVision/SIPA/Arnold Wells/Andres Otero/Nikki Nelson/Apega/WENN.com)
