With an Oscar under his belt, Eddie Redmayne can pretty much do whatever he wants. Indeed, his upcoming projects veer wildly, from voicing the straight-to-video "Thomas & Friends: Sodor’s Legend of the Lost Treasure" (fulfilling a childhood dream) to taking the gender-shifting lead in Tom Hooper‘s "The Danish Girl." One thing the actor hasn’t really done much of is blockbuster movies (we’ll just pretend "Jupiter Ascending" never happened), but he may be in line for a franchise.
Variety reports that Redmayne is the frontrunner to lead Warner Bros. "Harry Potter" spinoff "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them." J.K. Rowling is penning the script herself for this story, set in New York 70 years before Harry even comes into the picture, and focusing on Newt Scamander, a “magiczoologist.”
I haven’t read the books, so you’ll have to tell me if Redmayne is the right guy for the job. Four more major roles — two women, two men — also need to be filled for the movie that will helmed by ‘Harry Potter’ veteran David Yates. More likely to come soon as the movie is set to hit cinemas on November 18, 2016.
Update 5/12: Variety reports that Eddie Redmayne is now officially in talks for the film.