As the latest trailer for Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald took off, fans learnt one new game-changing plot point – Nagini, the seventh and final Horcrux, is in fact a person.
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This latest development, theorised by fans from the first-ever trailer for Fantastic Beasts, has had mixed reactions from the Harry Potter community.
While some shared their excitement for the new plot point and representation, others shared their disappointment and anger in the role Claudia Kim was cast in.
In the trailer, we explicitly see Kim’s new character. In one moment she’s a circus performer and the next, she’s a literal snake, one you’ll no doubt recognise so now Crimes of Grindelwald is also an origin story for Nagini.
Nagini, if you want a refresher, is Voldermort‘s servant(?)/loyal buddy(?)/pet(?)/killer/horcrux but as we now know, she’s a Maledictus. A Maledictus is a female individual who carries a blood curse – one that turns its carrier into a beast. The curse is carried down from mother to daughter.
J.K Rowling, author of the series and any subsequent lore, recently explained how Maledictuses are different to other mythical creatures like the Animagus (An individual who chooses to turn into an animal).
They’re different conditions. Maledictuses are always women, whereas werewolves can be either sex. The Maledictus carries a blood curse from birth, which is passed down from mother to daughter. https://t.co/wYfvPeQFRW
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) September 25, 2018
Rowling also debunked a very “persistent fan theory”.
Noooo… I thought I’d shot that one down! The escaped boa constrictor in Philosopher’s Stone wasn’t Nagini. It was never Nagini. That’s an incorrect but very persistent fan theory! https://t.co/QEy89kwloA
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) September 25, 2018
The author also replied to Twitter users who criticised the casting and ethnicity of Nagini’s human form. A number of tweets denounced the casting choice, and questioned why they would choose to cast a woman of colour into a role that goes from woman to animal to Voldermort’s snake.
A problem I have w/ the after-the-fact diversity tack-ons is that these characters & ANIMALS were written as NOT POC. But now that they’re being made POC their behavior doesn’t sync up. Like Wormtail MILKED Nagini to feed gross baby Voldemort in HP4 and now she’s an Asian woman?!
— Kat Cho🥯 (@KatCho) September 25, 2018
maybe “circus performer who turns into a murderous snake“ isn’t the best choice of role for one of the two WOC in the franchise.
— Gavia Baker-Whitelaw (@Hello_Tailor) September 25, 2018
One Twitter user, Jen Moulton, wrote: “Listen Joanne, we get it, you didn’t include enough representation when you wrote the books. But suddenly making Nagini into a Korean woman is garbage. Representation as an afterthought for more woke points is not good presentation.”
Attached to Moulton’s tweet was the latest trailer of Crimes of Grindelwald.
https://twitter.com/J_A_Moulton/status/1044898830444105728
Rowling replied:
The Naga are snake-like mythical creatures of Indonesian mythology, hence the name ‘Nagini.’ They are sometimes depicted as winged, sometimes as half-human, half-snake. Indonesia comprises a few hundred ethnic groups, including Javanese, Chinese and Betawi. Have a lovely day 🐍
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) September 26, 2018
Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald will open in Aussie cinemas November 15.
