Dumbledore is gay, “Harry Potter” fans finally saw that backstory play out onscreen in the third prequel spinoff “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.”
“Harry Potter” Professor Albus Dumbledore (played by a bearded Jude Law) had an intense meeting over tea in the movie’s opening scene with his former love-turned-archfoe Gellert Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelsen, who took over from Johnny Depp). Later, the two face off in a long-teased wand battle.
The social media reaction from fans still on the “Fantastic Beasts” train was varied. “What’s the secret?? That he’s gay??? We already knew that, bro,” wrote Twitter user @animeberet.
“I love so much how they’re handling Dumbledore being gay … Hope we see more,” wrote @PotterxFlash.
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The meeting between Dumbledore and Grindelwald takes place at an elegant art deco restaurant in the opening moments of “Secrets of Dumbledore,” which is co-written by Rowling. Grindelwald makes clear he wants to exterminate all Muggles, a plan which Dumbledore discussed when they were young, but no longer supports.
“I went along because I was in love with you,” Dumbledore says.
The tea does not end well, with Grindelwald warning, “There’s nothing you can do to stop me, Albus.”
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An additional question might be: Who is loving “Fantastic Beasts” now?
The long-delayed movie opened with just $43 million at the box office. “The Secrets of Dumbledore” won the holiday weekend, but with the franchise’s weakest showing yet. The first film debuted with $74.4 million in 2016.
“Not many people cared,” says Jeff Bock, box office analyst for Exhibitor Relations. “The dramatic tension is just not there, showing how much the ‘Fantastic Beasts’ franchise has eroded in comparison to ‘Harry Potter.’ “
multiple online posts which outraged fans who viewed them as transphobic. Even “Harry Potter” stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson publicly criticized the controversial opinions expressed by Rowling in a personal essay published on her website in June 2020.
To add to the woes, the Dumbledore reveal was pre-empted by the news that Warner Bros. has agreed to cut two lines – “because I was in love with you” and “the summer Gellert and I fell in love” – for the movie’s release in China. “A six second cut was requested and Warner Bros. accepted those changes to comply with local requirements, but the spirit of the film remains intact,” the studio said in a statement provided to USA TODAY.
The franchise’s diminishing returns could determine whether two planned films get a theatrical release or a big budget ($200 million for “Secrets of Dumbledore”). While the finale is primed for a Grindelwald-Dumbledore confrontation, neither film has been officially greenlit by Warner Bros.
“These films just don’t have the magic of the ‘Harry Potter’ books or films,” says Bock. “With these numbers, the future of ‘Fantastic Beasts’ is heading towards HBO Max. Changes have to happen.”