Most of us Gen Z’s grew up with Harry Potter films, hence the franchise is very close to our hearts. There were absolutely no bad Harry Potter films and the wizarding world of Hogwarts it showcased was something each of us wanted to experience. Unfortunately, Potterverse is not the same now, yet it manages to keep us engaged and bring back the nostalgia. The Fantastic Beasts franchise started on a good note but is now in a tricky place which might put a break on its future. In this article we’ll explain why Fantastic Beasts 4 might not happen now.
Poor Performance By Fantastic Beasts: Secrets of Dumbledore
Crimes of Grindelwald was without any doubt a very bad film with barely two or three exciting/watchable moments. So, Secrets of Dumbledore was expected to be a return to form which it was in certain aspects. Even though nothing significant happened throughout this excuse of a film, it was still a very enjoyable watch. The performance by the cast especially Mads Mikkelsen (Grindlewald) was on point and so were the VFX. But it lacked script, events, and action, which ultimately reduced it to an average film. Anyhow, it was way better than the second one and features better reviews and ratings as well.
So, the real reason why Fantastic Beasts 4 might not happen is Secrets of Dumbledore’s poor box office performance. Even though it’s a better film, it has earned nearly half of what Crimes of Grindelwald did. As of now it’s box office stands at only $366 million against a $200 million production budget. Crimes of Grindelwald earned over $650 million which was still quite less compared to rest of the Potterverse. So, Secrets of Dumbeldore showed the worst box office performance by a Potterverse film and couldn’t even earn $200 Million more than its budget.
The main reason behind this is that after Crimes of Grindelwald, audience was already quite disappointed and the 4 year hiatus after that added to the misery. Add to that numerous controversies the franchise faced including Johnny Depp’s legal case and J.K. Rowling’s comments on LGBTQ community. That aside, conflict between J.K Rowling and Katherine Waterston (Tina Goldstein) reduced Tina’s role to barely a cameo in the 3rd film. Apart from that, Ezra Miller who portrays Credence, has been arrested recently in a case of public violence. So, all these things are making it more and more difficult to hope for a 4th film.
David Yates Seems To Be Moving On
David Yates has been the helm of Potteverse for 15 years now and has directed the final four Harry Potter films as well as all of the Fantastic Beasts films so far. He was the only constant in the messed up world of Fantastic Beasts but now he seems to be moving on as well. Yates is now committing to finish directing the criminal-conspiracy film Pain Hustlers. So, as of now Fantastic Beasts 4 would be put on hold anyways.
It was previously stated the studio had pinned the hopes of the franchise on The Secrets of Dumbledore. In fact, it was only planning on working on the fourth film if Secrets of Dumbledore succeeded at the box office. So as of now, there is no script for the Fantastic Beasts 4 and David Yates’ latest plans of moving on can be considered as the final nail in the coffin. The last thing this franchise needs right now, is another hiatus which now seems inevitable.
An ambitious project which consisted of five films, is now dangling on the edge and might not make it past the 3rd film. That said, Secrets of Dumbledore surely didn’t feel like the end and there’s a lot of story still left to be told. Also, since the film has made 1.5x of its budget at box office, it is technically a hit. Plus audiences liked the film and are hopeful for a better future. So, considering all this, even though it’s hard, a glimmer of hope still exists and I choose to hang on to it.
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