Eddie Redmayne, who rode his own wave of charmingly bumbling Britishness all the way to an Academy Award this year in The Theory Of Everything, is looking likely to step into the Harry Potter franchise.
As is becoming standard for all book-to-film adaptations, J.K. Rowling‘s Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them is being split in a trilogy, with the first installment set for release next year.
Per reports in Variety, director David Yates is eyeing off the prestigious-as-balls Redmayne for the lead role of Newt Scarmander, and while nothing is finalised yet, the part is reportedly “his to lose.”
Rowling, who is writing the script, teased fans last year with the first line of the film’s synopsis – “Newt only meant to stay in New York for a few hours.”
There are four other major roles in the film – two American girls, and two American boys – and these have yet to be cast.
While it’s natural at this point to be skeptical of one slim book being turned into three massive movies – we’re looking at you, Hobbit – Rowling’s involvement gives us some hope that they’ll do this thing right.
Photo: Frederic J Brown via Getty Images
