Fantastic Beastsis summoning diminishing returns at the box office.
The third entry in theHarry Potterprequel series,The Secrets of Dumbledore, had the lowest North American opening weekend to date for the Wizarding World franchise with an estimated $43 million, according toVariety. In 2016,Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Themopened with $74 million domestically, and in 2018, sequelThe Crimes of Grindelwalddid $62 million.
Secrets of Dumbledorecomes in lower than other recent releases too, includingSonic the Hedgehog 2, which opened earlier this month to $71 million, andThe Batman, which debuted with $134 million.
Internationally,Secrets of Dumbledorehas fared slightly better,Varietyreported, with the movie earning $150.4 million so far.
In China — where some dialogue about Albus Dumbledore’spast gay romance was deletedto appease Chinese censorship of LGBTQ+ content for the film’s release there —Secrets of Dumbledorehas made $14.7 million. Half of the country’s movie theaters are currently shut down due to the pandemic, the outlet reported.
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TheFantastic Beastsfranchise has experienced more than one controversies in recent years.
In November 2020, Johnny Deppresigned from his role as villain Gellert Grindelwaldafter losing his U.K. libel case againstThe Sunover a headline that called him a “wife-beater” while talking about alleged domestic violence against ex-wife Amber Heard. The part was recast with Mads Mikkelsen, who debuts his version of the character inSecrets of Dumbledore.
Mikkelsen recently toldThe Hollywood Reporterwhy Grindelwald’s obvious change in appearance isn’t addressed in the movie: “That was very deliberate. Everybody knows why [the actors changed]. The entire world knows why. It would almost be like an Easter egg to reality to point out we swapped actors. Hopefully we drag them in with the first scene and from there they accept this world.”
Also, Ezra Miller, who plays Credence Barebone in theFantastic Beastsmovies, recentlyfell into legal trouble in Hawaii, days before the third movie was set to hit theaters.
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Potterauthor J.K. Rowling, who writes the screenplays for theFantastic Beastsmovies, has become a controversial figure for her outspoken views on transgender rights and feminism. Sheattended the red carpet premiereofSecrets of Dumbledorein London late last month. After writing the first twoFantastic Beastsfilms solo, longtimePotterscreenwriter Steve Kloves was brought back to co-write this third installment.
source: people.com
