Jude Law to Play Dumbledore in Fantastic Beasts Sequel

Jude Law will make the transition from young Pope to young wizard as the actor has been tapped to play Albus Dumbledore for the upcoming Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them sequel, Variety has revealed.

“As fans ourselves, we are thrilled to have Jude Law joining the ‘Fantastic Beasts’ cast, playing a character so universally adored,” Toby Emmerich, president and chief content officer of Warner Bros. Pictures, said. “Jude has been a member of the Warner Bros. family for years and we’re excited to embark on this new adventure with him.”

Law will star as a younger version of the famed wizard and Hogwarts headmaster. The role was originally played by Richard Harris in the first two Harry Potter films before his death in 2002. Michael Gambon then took over the role for the remainder of the franchise. Law is set to portray a version of Dumbledore long before he became a headmaster and was simply the school's Transfiguration professor.

The film will also focus more on the relationship between him and dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald, who was introduced in Fantastic Beasts and played by Johnny Depp under the guise of Colin Farrell's Percival Graves. Depp will return for the sequel alongside director David Yates and lead Eddie Redmayne. Harry Potter author and creator J.K. Rowling has written the screenplay.

The sequel has been set for release on November 16, 2018. Filming is set to begin in August 2017.