The newest film in the Harry Potter franchise, “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” is on the way. The movie is scheduled to hit theaters on April 15, marking the third entry in the Fantastic Beasts series, which plans on having five films total.

The cast had some major shakeups since the second film, “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald,” was released back in 2018. In “Fantastic Beasts 3,” Mads Mikkelsen makes his debut as Gellert Grindelwald — the villain role previously played by Johnny Depp in the first two movies. Harry Potter fans know that not only is Grindelwald one of the wizarding world’s most dangerous villains, but he was also childhood sweethearts with Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law). Rounding out the cast are series veterans including Eddie Redmayne, Ezra Miller, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Jessica Williams, and Callum Turner. Find out all the details we have about “Fantastic Beasts 3,” including the cast, setting, trailers, and more.

Fantastic Beasts 3, officially titled Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, is just around the corner. The Harry Potter prequel is arriving next month, with the movie releasing slightly earlier in the UK (a week earlier than the US, to be exact).

We now have two trailers to pore over, which promise a tense battle between Dumbledore and Grindelwald as the two finally come face to face and war is threatened on the muggles of the world. We’ve also got the lowdown on the cast, including the details on Mads Mikkelsen replacing Johnny Depp as Gellert Grindelwald, as well as all the new and returning faces in the movie. Plus, we’ve also rounded up everything there is to know about the plot, although a lot of details are still being kept firmly under wraps. So, for all that and more, keep reading to find out everything we know so far about Fantastic Beasts 3.

Fantastic Beasts 3 release date is April 15, 2022

The Fantastic Beasts 3 release date has been brought forward to April 15, 2022, in the US, and slightly earlier on April 8 in the UK. By the time the film hits cinemas, it will have been over three years since the debut of The Crimes of Grindelwald. That’s longer than the two years that elapsed between the first two Fantastic Beasts movies, but it wasn’t all caused by COVID-19…

The company line is “artistry”. “We are incredibly excited about and have confidence in the Fantastic Beasts series,” said Warner Bros Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich. “We all believe this release date will give the filmmakers time and space to allow their artistry to truly flourish and deliver the best possible film to our fans.”

Come March 2020 and Fantastic Beasts 3 was filming and set for cinemas in November the following year. Then, COVID-19 struck. Filming was paused, but then the cameras started rolling again in September.

Warner Bros was seemingly pulling out all the stops to ensure that Fantastic Beasts 3 release date remained in 2021. But then, another blow to production: Johnny Depp was asked to leave the cast following a public court battle with a UK newspaper. The fallout left the studio moving the release date to 2022.

It might be a long time until we see Fantastic Beasts 4, too: there will be “a break” between the third and fourth movie, and director David Yates is helming another film in the gap.