Why ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore’ may bomb at the box-office

For Wizarding World fans, the Fantastic Beasts movies have not been a walk in the park. The first two films have been action-packed and energetic but lack the heart and soul of the original Harry Potter films.

Thus, it makes sense that the films have not gotten the same box-office fortune as their Potter counterparts.

Admittedly, they would be great movies if the original HP series wasn’t casting such a large shadow over them.

Here’s why the third film, The Secrets of Dumbledore, in the series may be very likely to bomb in cinemas

(Disclaimer: These are the authors viewpoints)

Why this 'Fantastic Beasts' threequel may bomb

3) Warner Bros. fired Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp as Gellert Grindelwald (Image via Warner Bros.)

If it should follow in the same ill-fated footsteps as the forthcoming Aquaman sequel, it is likely that, due to Depp's absence, the film will perform poorly during its box-office run. Of course, that may be a large part due to Depp’s ardent fanbase.

In addition to the termination, Warner Bros. really didn’t do themselves any favors firing Depp. They still had to pay him his eight-figure salary and have to pay his replacement (Mads Mikkelsen) for the rest of the series.

This did not seem like the best decision in the middle of production for a film.

2) 'The Secrets of Dumbledore' has already been delayed twice

Jude Law, Eddie Redmayne and Johnny Depp in the 'Fantastic Beasts' series (Image via Warner Bros.)

After The Crimes of Grindelwald was released in late 2018, the third film was slated for a November 2020 release date. However, it was delayed for a year, probably to allow the filmmakers to fix any issues that may have already ensued.

In November 2020, however, Depp was fired after losing his libel case against The Sun newspaper. Thus, the film was delayed, once again, to 2022.

This may not seem like a big deal, but delaying something repeatedly may cause audiences to become frustrated and lose interest in the film.

1) Some of the previous cast is under scrutiny

Kevin Guthrie played Abernathy in the 'Fantastic Beasts' films (Image via Warner Bros.)

In news that has been somewhat under the radar, Kevin Guthrie, who portrayed Abernathy, was jailed for three years after he had assaulted a woman in Glasgow. This was, yet, another problem that scourged the production of the third movie.

Whether people like it or not, cancel culture is a real thing, and people will be less likely to put their money in a series that stars someone convicted of a crime.

Of course, only time will tell if the third Fantastic Beasts film will be a success.