JK Rowling new wizard movie to be released in 2016

The first film from a trilogy based on spin-off book Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, has been scheduled for release on November 18, 2016.

The films will be based on Fantastic Beasts – which was written by Rowling in 2001 – a textbook written by minor character Newt Scamander, and used by wizards and witches at Hogwarts School, with annotations scrawled across its pages from Harry and his friends.

JK Rowling has said the film will be neither a sequel nor a prequel to the books, but “an extension of the wizarding word”, which will be set in New York around 70 years before Harry’s story began. Writing on her Facebook page previously, she said: “I thought it was a fun idea, but the idea of seeing Newt Scaramander, the supposed author of Fantastic Beasts, realised by another writer was difficult.

“Having lived for so long in my fictional universe, I feel very protective of it.”

David Yates will be back behind the camera, after directing the last four films.

The second film is earmarked for 2018 with a third following in 2020, Warner Brother’s studio has confirmed.

Fantastic Beasts was written in aid of Comic Relief. Alongside its companion Quidditch Through the Ages, it raised more than £17 million for charity.