The most recent dive into the world of Harry Potter has taken us back into the past of the franchise, ever since 2016. The Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them movies take place before the original Harry Potter events happen, giving us a view of the wizarding world in the 1920s and 30s and setting up the story Harry Potter only hints on between Dumbledore and his friend, Grindelwald. However, neither of them are the main character — the story actually follows Newt Scamander, the author of the book Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them as he writes and publishes his book and gets pulled along into the conflict.
When the first Fantastic Beast and Where to Find Them movie was released, it introduced us to the world and all of its problems, giving us the setting for what was planned to be a five movie series. The second movie, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, brought more of the plot of the series, showing us more of Grindelwald and why he is the villain of the story, as well as bringing other important characters into the mix.
However, after the most recent installment in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, it seems the franchise is beginning to fall off. As the cast and crew continue to drum up issues and controversies, there’s a chance the series could be cut short. There is no official confirmation though, so if you’d like a refresher to remember who is who, or you’d like to give the series a shot yourself, everything you need to know about the cast and characters is right here.
Newt Scamander
The main character of the series, Newt Scamander is played by Eddie Redmayne. You’ll not often find him without his signature blue jacket or his magical briefcase that has an entire room hidden inside so that he can travel with some of his magical creatures. He has been traveling the world to study these creatures and write a book on their proper care, hoping to help people understand them better and stop the needless killing.
He’s trying to return one of the creatures to the wilds where they belong in the first movie, but gets wrapped up in New York when some of his creatures escape, needing to find them for himself and for the muggles, or no-maj, in the city. Despite how closed off and secretive he seems at first, he easily befriends the others, meaning it was easy for him to get wrapped up in the bigger issue of Grindelwald to help them out.
Jacob Kowalski
Jacob Kowalski is an interesting character for the group, as he is a no-maj himself. Played by Dan Fogler, Jacob first meets Newt when they run into each other in a bank while he was trying to get money to open a bakery. Not only does Jacob escape from Newt before his memories of the magic can be erased, making him a threat to the wizarding world, but he accidentally picks up Newt's suitcase instead of his own, making him the reason the creatures escaped in the first place. He gets swept up into the group as he has to be treated for a bite, and joins them for the adventure. He begins to fall in love with Queenie, and despite the attempt to wipe his memories at the end, the magic didn’t work properly, so he is able to return to the adventure in the subsequent movies as he chases after Queenie.
Tina Goldstein
The first wizard Newt runs into in New York is Tina Goldstien, played by Katherine Waterston. She is Queenie’s sister, and works for the Magical Congress of the United States of America (MACUSA). After an incident with the Second Salemers, she was demoted from her auror position, but can’t help herself and still tries to bring justice to those who are doing wrong. Though she initially mistakes Newt as the reason New York is having problems, she quickly helps him instead after the mistake of not trusting him nearly costs Queenie her life. The two grow close and develop a romantic attraction that gets tested many times as they both get swept up into the fight against Grindelwald.
Queenie Goldstein
Queenie Goldstein works for MACUSA like her sister Tina, but in a more secretary-like position. Played by Alison Sudol, her most unique trait is the special skill she has that lets her read minds without having to use magic. She seems used to slipping into the shadows under the light of everyone else, but when Jacob takes a special interest in her, she quickly becomes infatuated. Unfortunately, America isn’t very keen on witches and wizards having relationships with no-maj’s, so despite the fact that they like each other a lot, Jacob seems to know they can never be together, while Queenie is desperate to find a way to get around the law so that they can be together.
Credence Barebone
Credence Barebone is played by Ezra Miller, and takes on a surprising role in the story. At first, it seems Credence is nothing more than one of the Second Salemers, but as the story progresses, it becomes clear that he is integral to the plot. Because he was raised by a mother who believes witchcraft is the worst thing in the world, the powers he grew up with were suppressed and became an obscurus — a dark and destructive parasitic entity. Most children who developed an obscurus died young, so Credence was a rare exception and a far more powerful force.
As Tina and Newt try to calm Credence down to help him out, Grindelwald believes having him on his side is the key to taking control of the wizarding world, and the clash of the two sends him down a path of his own to find his real family and discover who he really is. Unfortunately, Ezra Miller's recent problems have put the future of Fantastic Beasts, or at least Miller's character, in question.
Gellert Grindelwald
Gellert Grindelwald has been played by two actors: Johnny Depp, and after he was replaced due to the scandals around him, Mads Mikkelsen. Even then, in the first movie Grindelwald was pretending to be Percival Graves, a very important MACUSA figure, in order to find the obscurus, so there he was played by Colin Farrell. Grindelwald is, essentially, this time period’s Voldemort. He wants to take over the wizarding world and make changes those in charge refuse to, but he plans to take over by any and all means necessary, including violence.
As one of the greatest wizards of the time, very few can compete against him, so it makes him that much more dangerous. Though his attempts to gain Credence’s trust are questionable, he has a clear reason for it, as he believes Credence is the only one who can kill Dumbledore, the greatest threat to his cause.
Theseus Scamander
Theseus Scamander, played by Callum Turner, doesn’t show up until the second movie, though he is briefly mentioned in the first. He is Newt’s older brother, and often overshadows Newt with his achievements. He is considered a war hero due to his contributions during the first world war, and is head auror for the Ministry of Magic. He even became engaged to Leta Lestrange, who was Newt’s school crush. Their relationship is tense when they first meet because of this, and it’s clear that, though they are siblings, they rarely see eye to eye. However, over the course of the movie, as they try to reach the same goal, they quickly prove that their innately loving family bonds are still strong as they fight at each other’s side.
Albus Dumbledore
If you’ve seen the other Harry Potter movies, then Albus Dumbledore needs no introduction. Played here by Jude Law, Dumbledore has only recently begun to teach at Hogwarts at the time, and though Newt was expelled, he keeps in close contact with him. Dumbledore is seen as one of the few people who can go up against Grindelwald, but they can’t actually harm each other. They used to be friends, and as such made a magical blood pact that they would never harm each other. Dumbledore uses Newt to go after Grindelwald in his place, being as vague as ever but hoping to send him in the right direction and indirectly give him all the help he needs to fight.