Creator of ＂Fantastic Animals＂： How to Deal with the Magic World without Harry Potter

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’s main creation.

Special feature of 1905 film network There may be such a "Harry Potter fan" around each of us: they are obsessed with the mysterious wand and cool spell used by the protagonist, and have been longing for a magical broom or a snow-white owl pet that flies into the sky, and even look forward to receiving the admission notice of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry year after year … … After the endings of seven original Harry Potter novels and eight adapted movies, many fans cherish that wonderful memory with reluctance and look forward to meeting the wizarding world again as soon as possible.

　

Finally, five years after bidding farewell to the Harry Potter series, a new magician was born in J·K· Rowling’s works, the magical zoologist Newt Scarmand. Although he also graduated from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Newt’s legendary experience actually happened in another historical time and space far away from Harry Potter. And this movie, named Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, will also become the door for the audience and the vast number of "fans" to enter a brand-new magical world.

　

In addition to director david yates, the other four masters of this film — — "Little Freckles" Eddie Redmayne, katherine waterston, dan fogler and alison sudol are all newcomers to the wizarding world. Can they Hold this parallel magical world without the "legendary" Harry Potter? 1905 Movie Network chatted with these new magicians, Muggles and david yates, the helm behind the scenes, during the promotional tour of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in China.

　

"Little Freckle" Eddie Redmayne & katherine waterston

"Little Freckle" Eddie Redmayne & katherine waterston

"As a fan of Harry Potter, acting in Fantastic Animals makes me very stressed."

　

A long time ago, Eddie Redmayne, a newcomer, had hoped to get a role as the Weasley son in Harry Potter through an audition. Although he was not selected in those years, he is now lucky to be the next focus of the wizarding world. Newt, the protagonist of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, is a magical zoologist who is a bit rash. Eddie admits that he is not very similar to this character: "I am a man with a heavy heart, and Newt’s famous saying is’ Worrying is equal to suffering twice’, and now this sentence has become my motto."

　

Although many years have passed, there are still many people who like Harry Potter. As a work to restart the wizarding world in J·K· Rowling, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them bears many people’s expectations. As the hero of this series, Eddie naturally took on a lot of pressure. However, he said that the differences between Newt and Harry Potter are the attraction of this role, and he hoped that all the unexpected details in the story would eventually become surprises for the audience.

　

1905 Movie Network: As a Muggle, did you experience anything beyond imagination during the filming of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them? Will it be difficult to play a wizard?

　

Katherine waterston: That’s right. If we were magicians, everything would be easy to shoot.

　

Eddie Redmayne: If you can do magic, your whole life will be easy, okay? (Laughter) Shooting "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" really requires us to use a lot of imagination, but fortunately, the director david yates gave us a lot of help. He and the crew provided many auxiliary tools for the actors, which saved us from worrying too much about imagination. For example, there are many magical creatures in our movies that need CGI post-production, and when shooting, David will find a big dog or a small dog to cooperate with us to complete these scenes.

　

"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" stills

1905 Movie Network: What is your favorite magic or spell in the movie?

　

Katherine waterston: What I like is actually a very simple magic, that is, my sister Queenie and I prepare dinner for the boys at home. The scene on the day of shooting was actually very magical. We put on aprons hanging in the air in front of the stove, the dining table was decorated by ourselves, and everything really moved in the room. It felt like magic really came. What Alison (the actor who plays Queenie) has done is also very interesting. We can light candles without hands, open the tin foil of the package and taste the food made by "magic" together, which impressed me deeply. I like the teleport spell very much, too. The two of us just like dancing in a country dance, holding hands and disappearing together.

　

1905 Movie Network: Why do you think you were chosen to play this role? Are there any similarities between you?

　

Eddie Redmayne: What every movie wants to convey should have some resonance with your inner thoughts, but many times the characters are not necessarily similar to yours. For example, when I played the wizard Newt, I found that I was actually a person with a heavy heart and often worried, and Newt famously said in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them that "worrying too much is equal to suffering twice". Now this sentence has become my motto, and Newt’s lines have guided my life direction. So it seems that Newt and I are actually quite different.

　

1905 Movie Network: Many fans all over the world still love the story of Harry Potter. As the protagonist of the new magical world, are you worried that people will compare your role with Harry Potter?

　

Eddie Redmayne: Most people in the cast of "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" should also be fans of the Harry Potter series, so in fact, we are also under great pressure, because as fans, you certainly don’t want to influence or destroy a classic. I think that’s what makes J.K· Rowling great. In Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, she created a magical world that can evoke many past memories, but she also created a completely different new timeline. My character is very different from Harry Potter. Harry Potter is a magical boy chosen by fate and becomes an extraordinary wizard in the story. Newt, however, is just a magician who is very enthusiastic and loves magical animals, which is very different. This is also an important reason why Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and the role attract me, because he is a character who is very unexpected to the audience.

　

"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" stills

1905 Movie Network: Do you have any expectations for the next sequel to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them?

　

Eddie Redmayne: We have many ideas and even dreams about the sequel! The director and screenwriter have revealed some small details to us, but … … (Can’t spoil the face)

Katherine waterston: Yes, but we haven’t read the script yet, so we don’t know exactly what happened … …

　

1905 Movie Network: So will there be more big magic battles and action scenes?

　

Two people: there will definitely be! We are also looking forward to the upcoming story.

　

1905 Movie Network: Before Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Eddie was more involved in realistic biographies. Which kind do you like better than the two themes? Which is more difficult to play, the aerial role or the real person?

　

Eddie Redmayne: At first, I thought that this role, because it is fictional in science fiction, may require me to use a lot of imagination to enrich it. In fact, J.K. Rowling described Newt in great detail, which made me feel like I was playing a character in a biopic. In the process of communication with her, she can tell me many little things in Newt’s life in great detail, so I didn’t continue to explore too much in the end, as long as I performed as she outlined. So at present, it seems to me that these characters actually feel quite similar when performing.

Editing/Ren Jiewen/Zhang Yuning