12 secrets and theories about the Fantastic Beasts: the Crimes of Grindelwald trailer. Check it out!
By Gabriela Benevides and Pedro Martins
Collaborators: Ana Alves, Kätrin Baumgarten, Renato Ritto e Rodrigo Cavalheiro
1. Will Grindelwald escape using thestrals?
Seen for the first time in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the winged horses which pull the Hogwarts carriages appear in the Fantastic Beasts trailer. Pottermore confirmed this scene is set in New York City. The thestrals take flight atop a high building, similar to Woolworth Building, where the Magical Congress of the United States (MACUSA) is located. According to the first synopsis released by Warner Bros. Pictures, Gellert Grindelwald is under arrest at MACUSA and will make a dramatic escape. The fans, therefore, speculate that Grindelwald will escape using thestrals.
It is a valid theory, seeing that magical creatures cannot be tracked by the Ministry of Magic – in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Sirius Black escaped using a hippogriff – and thestrals, in addition to enduring long voyages (perhaps intercontinental?), can only be seen by few people (those ones who have seen death). Also, two wizards chase after the carriage in high speed. Would they be aurors attempting to capture it or the escape escort?
2. Is Credence a Lestrange?
A figure similar to Dumbledore analyzes a wall etched with mysterious words and symbols. Analyzing attentively, it’s possible to notice genealogical trees. Credence Barebone descends from Corvus Lestrange. Would Credence be a Lestrange?
3. Grindelwald is free, discoursing to a crowd
Accompanied by Vinda Rosier, whose family members would later become Death Eaters, Grindelwald is seen in front of a crowd. It is not a trial, given that the dark wizard is free. Considering that Grindelwald (similarly to Hitler) has great power of persuasion, it is speculated that on this scene he might be planting the seeds to his fascist ideals and recruiting members to the cause of wizarding supremacy.
4. Are prophecies back?
On the scene where Grindelwald is discoursing, Vinda Rosier, the witch beside him, has an orb in her hands, similar to the prophecies seen in Harry Potter and the Order or the Phoenix. If this orb is indeed a prophecy, what would its part in the plot be?
5. Dumbledore can’t move against Grindelwald. Why?
“It has to be you”, Dumbledore says to Newt Scamander, in London. In secret, since during an interrogation in Hogwarts, employees of the Ministry of Magic – accompanied by Theseus Scamander – claim that the magizoologist is working under the professor’s orders and, in a joking tone, Dumbledore denies it. But why can’t Dumbledore move against Grindelwald?
6. Newt fights beside his brother Theseus
Theseus, Newt’s older brother, is a war hero who became head of the auros department in the Ministry of Magic. On account of his engagement to Leta Lestrange, for whom Newt nurtured a powerful passion, fans speculated whether the brothers had drifted apart. In the trailer, however, they appear fighting together in what appears to be a cemetery. In 2017, there were rumors that the Fantastic Beasts crew had been filming at the Highgate Cemetery, in London.
7. Credence’s obscurus is alive
On a rooftop with the Eiffel Tower in the background, a broody Credence tries to resist a dark mist which is emanating from his body. It’s Obscurus, a destructive magical force which appears in wizards who are forced to repress their magic. On this scene he is accompanied by Maledictus, a witch who carries a family curse that transforms her into a beast. Further down the line, Credence appears to be nervous.
8. Three magical animals were revealed
Aside from the return of the Bowtruckle and the Mooncalves, three unseen magical creatures were revealed along the trailer:
1. The first one, the creature Newt rides underwater during the trailer, is a Kelpie, a metamorphic demon which, after luring riders, dives into the bottom and gobbles them.
2. The second one, which appears in a low flight behind Jacob, is probably an Augurey. The book Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, describes it as a thin, sad looking and black-greenish colored bird whose song, low and sobbing, announces the coming of rain. Beyond the greenish tail and part of the head, it is noticeable that, in the background where the bird appears, it is raining.
3. Also behind Jacob, there is a moose. However, this creature is not described in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. It is, probably, an original J.K. Rowling creation for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.
9. Hogwarts is (almost) identical to the one we see in Harry Potter
Hogwarts is heavily featured in the trailer. From external to internal shots, it is possible to see that the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is (almost) identical to the one we have been seeing throughout the last Harry Potter movies. It is possible to see the Defense Against The Dark Arts classroom on a scene where Dumbledore is interrogated about Newt’s whereabouts.
10. Will we get to know French Ministry of Magic?
The trailer introduces an atrium with a spinning glass dome, decorated with images of magical creatures such as Le Niffleur (Niffler) e Hippocampe (Hippocampus). Would this atrium be the French Ministry of Magic? Some kind of magical creatures control department, perhaps?
11. Queenie looks upset – and is not seen with Tina, Newt or Jacob
In the announcing poster as well as in the trailer, Queenie Goldstein looks disturbingly sad. Although still elegant, her costume suffered a drastic change into darker tones as well as her hair being in a different color. Oscar winner for Best Costume for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Colleen Atwood is usually very careful when representing the personality of the characters in her creations. That being said, what could this darkening of the costume mean? Sadness for losing Jacob? Or something more? And why is she blonde? Is she hiding from someone, and therefore, changing her looks? At no point in the trailer she is seen with Tina, Newt or Jacob.
12. Dumbledore had already invented the Deluminator
On a dark scene, lights are taken from the lampposts. That is the work of the Deluminator, invented by Albus Dumbledore. Could this be the Deluminator Dumbledore uses on Privet Drive when delivering Harry to Dursleys?
BONUS: The typography from the Paris is very similar to Potterish logo!
In 1927, Paris breathed Art Nouveau, an exceptionally decorated artistic style, filled with arabesques. This is reflected on the Eiffel Tower postcard Newt holds in his hands. The typography in the name of the city, especially the P, is remarkably similar to Potterish logo!
Written by Potterish Team
Translated by Kätrin Baumgarten
Reviewed by Caroline Dorigon
