Who Is New Grindelwald
The first trailer for the upcoming Fantastic Beasts picture, which takes place in the Harry Potter wizarding universe, has been published, and it offers us our first look at Mads Mikkelsen in the role of Grindelwald, who will be played by Daniel Radcliffe. A new installment of the prequel series, dubbed Fantastic Beasts 3: The Secrets of Dumbledore, will include Mikkelson as the evil wizard in the main role.
Knowledge Of The Dark Arts: Voldemort
There shouldnt be a long discussion over this. The argument should be, Horcuxes. Nuff said. However, well still elaborate by pointing out that nobody took learning the Dark Arts further than Voldemort.
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The guy opened up the Chamber of Secrets when he was just sixteen, for crying out loud. He went as far as making seven horcruxes. The caves cursed goblet and Inferi were a magic even Dumbledore didn’t really know how to best, and the cursed ring was what led to his demise. Grindelwald has never shown any particular proficiency in Dark Arts knowledge, other than the experimentations with them which led to his expulsion. Other than that, we dont know if he knew much more.
Professor Dumbledore’s History With Grindelwald Explained
One of the most famous rivalries in Wizarding World history started out with two young wizards yearning for friendship and acceptance. The relationship between Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald eventually grew into a fraught and passionate one, with their histories, secrets and obsessions leading to an infamous duel that changed the course of the magical world’s history.
Harry Potter fans know Dumbledore as the wizened, powerful old headmaster of Hogwarts and one of the most popular characters in the entire “Wizarding World” franchise. Grindelwald is mentioned infrequently in the Harry Potter books and movies, mostly in relation to his duel with Dumbledore and the history of the wielders of the Elder Wand. In the “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” book, Grindelwald is killed by Lord Voldemort in prison after he refuses to tell the dark wizard where the Elder Wand is. But in the movies, Grindelwald is not shown being killed by Voldemort and willingly tells him where to find the wand.
With the release of the “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” movie series, we’re finally seeing more of Dumbledore’s and Grindelwald’s pasts and their relationship to one another as well as how that passionate relationship built on love and trust turned ugly and impacted the whole of the wizarding world and beyond.
Here’s everything to know about Dumbledore’s history with Grindelwald.
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So What Does That Mean For The Series
The most obvious implication for the rest of the Fantastic Beasts series is thematic. J.K. Rowling loves parallelism, so if the Dumbledore connection is true, then shes likely setting up a bunch of parallels between Credence/Aurelius and Harry himself.
Theyre both orphans, both raised by abusive guardians who were extremely paranoid of witches. Both grew up completely separated from the wizarding world, yet both eventually discovered themselves to belong to extremely prominent magical families with hugely important roles to play in the ongoing struggle between light and dark wizards. Both are extremely powerful wizards in their own right and crucially, both seem to have been scoped out and targeted by dark wizards wanting to exploit them for their own agendas.
Of course, the way their parallel origin stories play out has been quite different for each of them thus far. Credence has been alternately courted and cast aside by Grindelwald, depending on how useful he appears to be. Harry was initially marked for death by Voldemort, and apart from a few moments of tempting him, that pretty much never changed.
However, given that the previously established canonical timeline seems to be rapidly derailing and speeding up, theres just no telling where well land. Only one thing seems certain: What we know of the wizarding world will probably be very different by the end of Fantastic Beasts than when the franchise began.
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Who Will Carry On The Lestrange Line
Le-stranger things have happened
One big focus in Crimes is the Lestrange family, known from Rowlings books because of Rodolphus and Bellatrix Lestrange, two of Voldemorts most loyal Death Eaters. Crimes reveals that the Lestrange family has some extremely dark history to go along with their evil descendants, involving magical kidnapping, rape, multiple deaths during childbirth, and a selfish, fatal choice aboard a sinking ship that may or may not have been the Titanic. Crimes establishes a previous generation of the family, then promptly wipes it out. Between the deaths of the younger Corvus V and his half-sister Leta Lestrange, its not clear that there are actually any Lestranges left to carry on the name. The Lestrange family tree is complicated, but at the moment, the branches seem to have been pruned back pretty sharply.
Then again, its Harry Potter, and mysterious lost relatives are constantly turning up out of the blue. Le-stranger things have happened.
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Will The Series Work Toward Another Iconic Battle
Rowling wants to tell the story of Grindelwalds rise, but with that comes another one that shell need to tell: his downfall.
Dumbledore knew what his former friend was capable of, but even when Grindelwald rose to power Dumbledore hesitated to do something about it for years. It appeared that Grindelwald feared Dumbledore, but Dumbledore also feared him, and even held off facing him because of it.
They say he feared me, and perhaps he did, but less, I think, than I feared him It was the truth I feared, Dumbledore told Harry in Deathly Hallows. You see, I never knew which of us, in that last, horrific fight, had actually cast the curse that killed my sister I think he knew it, I think he knew what frightened me. I delayed meeting him until finally, it would have been too shameful to resist any longer. People were dying and he seemed unstoppable, and I had to do what I could.
Dumbledore and Grindelwalds duel in 1945 is famousand like Harrys final battle with Voldemort more than 50 years later, it had witnesses. And we know it ended in Grindelwalds defeat and Dumbledore becoming master of the Elder Wand.
According to Elphias Doge, Those who witnessed it have written of the terror and the awe they felt as they watched these two extraordinary wizards do battle, and Dumbledores victory is as significant of a mark in wizarding history as Voldemorts downfall in 1981 and the International Statute of Secrecy being introduced.
How Does The Timeline Work Now
The Crimes of Grindelwald doesnt just introduce new faces to the Potter world it brings back some old friends in young forms that dont really make a ton of sense.
Chief among those is the appearance by a young Professor McGonagall, whose brief scenes in Crimes of Grindelwald dont fit the franchises established timeline. McGonagalls birthday had previously been worked out by fans at the Harry Potter wiki to be in 1935, eight years after Crimes takes place. McGonagall herself notes in Order of the Phoenix that she had only been teaching at Hogwarts for thirty-nine years this December in 1995, putting her start date in 1956. And yet Crimes has her as an adult, already teaching at the school in 1927. The obvious answer is that the Professor McGonagall in the film is an older relative again, Rowling loves to bring in recognizable names from different generations except that the films credits and Rowlings official script both indicate that the character in the film is Minerva McGonagall. Thats confusing, but its unlikely to be a mistake its more likely that Rowling is changing the timeline somehow.
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Dumbledore And Grindelwalds Impending Duel
Notably, at the end of Crimes of Grindelwald, Newt and Dumbledore discuss how Dumbledore and Grindelwald swore not to fight one another.
Instead of making an Unbreakable Vow, the two made a Blood Oatha new concept for Harry Potter fans. Considering that Dumbledore and Grindelwald do eventually fight, a Blood Oath is presumably breakable, unlike an Unbreakable Vow.
The Crimes of Grindelwald
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Antioch Cadmus And Ignotus Peverell
The Peverell family is first mentioned in Half-Blood Prince as ancestors of , the maternal grandfather of Voldemort. In the final book of the series, they are revealed to be the original owners of the Deathly Hallows, which, according to The Tales of Beedle the Bard, they received from Death, although Dumbledore believed it is more likely that they created them themselves. The Peverell lineage continues through its living descendants, including Harry and his children.
After Hermione saw the symbol of the Deathly Hallows on Ignotus Peverell’s grave in Godric’s Hollow, Harry recalled Marvolo Gaunt boasting that his ring held the Peverell coat of arms on it, thus realising that the three brothers were the Peverells. Harry deduces that he is descended from Ignotus, as the cloak is passed down through his family. Furthermore, Rowling has confirmed that Harry and Voldemort are indeed distant relatives because of their relation to the Peverells, as the majority of wizard families share common ancestry.
Antioch Peverell was the eldest of the three Peverell brothers, and owner of the Elder Wand. He was killed in his sleep after bragging about the wand’s invincibility, having won a duel with it. The murderer then stole the Elder Wand, thus initiating its bloody history.
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Is Tom Riddle Grindelwald
Is there a connection between Voldemort and Grindelwald? The reality is that they most likely arent. To begin with, Tom Riddle is descended from Muggles on his fathers side and from Gaunts via his mothers side. The Gaunts are a long-established wizarding family, with a genealogy that can be traced back to Salazar Slytherin, one of the four founders of Hogwarts, who lived in the early nine hundred years.
Massing His Forces: Crimes Of Grindelwald
Grindelwald eventually established a prison, Nurmengard in Austria, to serve as a headquarters for himself and his followers, apparently sufficiently impregnable that he was later imprisoned in it, inaccessible to his former supporters and breached only by Voldemort. Not much is yet known about the “For the greater good revolution”, but in the flashbacks of the beginning of the first Fantastic Beasts film we see he killed a large group of Aurors with a single curse while he was in Switzerland and he apparently caused an explosion at an as of yet unspecified location that appeared to kill many Muggles and Wizards alike.
At some point in the future he murders Viktor Krum’s grandfather, and presumably there were many others. As of yet no other information is available about the events that transpired during his reign of terror across continental Europe but as more films are released in the Fantastic Beasts series, so too will be more information of the various crimes and acts of terror he has committed in his lifetime.
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Severe Malnutrition While Imprisoned At Nurmengard
While the Fantastic Beasts franchise is currently focusing on the rise of Grindelwald, Harry Potter fans already know about his fall. Upon Grindelwalds eventual capture, he is imprisoned in a manner befitting his infamy. However, his crimes warranted a different punishment than other criminals. Standard wizarding criminals are imprisoned in Azkaban, but Grindelwald was given a sentence of solitary confinement in a prison of his own.
Grindelwald was imprisoned in Nurmengard, which ironically was a structure he used for his own victims. While here, he was kept under strict watch and spent the days since his capture locked away in a small cell. When Voldemort visits him to obtain information, Grindelwald is a shell of his former self. His once bright skin is weathered, and he looks malnourished and emaciated. Perhaps he finally got what he deserved.
Dumbledores Conflict With The Ministry Of Magic
Meet young Dumbledore. At this time, Dumbledore is the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts. We see him teach a class on Boggarts that closely parallels the lesson Professor Remus Lupin gave Harry and his classmates decades later.
Fans find out that Dumbledores uneasy relationship with the wizarding government began early in the professors Hogwarts career. Officials from the Ministry of Magic interrupt the class to confront Dumbledore: they allege that hes working against them by sending Newt Scamander to America and then Paris to protect Credence, an Obscurial, from Grindelwald.
When Dumbledore evades their questions, they forbid him from continuing to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. A boy named McLaggen comes to Dumbledores defense, saying hes the best teacher theyve had.
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Both Have Special Abilities But One Is More Associated With Evil
Back in December 2016, Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling revealed that Grindelwald is a Seer, a witch or wizard that possesses the ability to see into the future. This fact explains why Grindelwald as Colin Farrells Percival Graves consistently tells Credence Barebone that hes seen visions of a powerful Obscurial child in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.
Theres no denying that having such a gift would make Grindelwald a formidable threat to anyone standing against him, but being a Seer isnt necessarily associated with the darker side of magic. After all, Professor Sybill Trelawney who teaches Divination at Hogwarts is a Seer.
Elsewhere, Voldemort is a Parselmouth, someone who can converse with serpents and other similar magical creatures. While you dont automatically turn out to be evil if you can speak Parseltongue Harry Potter could snakes are often used in wizardry wrongdoings and heavily associated with suspicious characters.
He Looks Much Older Than His Age
Grindelwald and Dumbledores lives run parallel to one another because of the time they spent in Godrics Hollow together. The boys grew very close together due to how similar they are in age and intelligence. However, by the time 1926 rolls around during the Crimes of Grindelwald, their appearances are much different.
Despite only being in his early 40s during this time period, Grindelwald certainly looks much older. His white-haired appearance makes him look in his mid-fifties. While this appears to be an artistic choice, he is also being played by the 55-year-old Johnny Depp. Regardless of whether his appearance matches his age, it does not change how menacing Grindelwald looks.
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Why Is Voldemort More Feared Than Grindelwald
Because Grindelwald doesnt got much time to seek power and knowledge but Voldemort started this from his school days and started his quest of knowledge and power which made him more stronger and power and nearly invincible. Grindelwald whereas started his quest and his quest got finished in just a few years.
Tom Riddle Aka Lord Voldemort The Villain No 2
Since his childhood, Tom Riddle had always been a strange and special person, but violent towards other children, scaring them whenever he felt like it.
This arrogant and selfish student of the Slytherin house was the master of dark magic, the most dangerous magic in the wizarding world.
After finishing 7 years of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he disappeared for a while, returning stronger and deadly.
His power to move objects with his mind, as well as communicating with animals were not the only skills he was known of.
Unsupported flight, Legilimency , Fiendfyre , the ability to create Horcruxes , and his signature spell known as Avada Kedavra were the scariest features of this walking evil.
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Not Using Polyjuice Potion As A More Effective Way For His Disguise
Grindelwald posed as Percival Graves during the first Fantastic Beasts movie using transfiguration rather than Polyjuice potion. Being a master strategist, Grindelwalds decision to do so wasnt a smart one since the ending showed Newt easily removing the transfiguration to reveal the real Grindelwald.
Polyjuice potion was so effective that Barty Crouch Jr. was able to fool Dumbledore for a whole year by posing as Mad-Eye Moody. Since Grindelwald had dispatched Graves, he could easily have used Graves to create the Polyjuice potion and ensure no one would be able to use magic to expose his charade.
Relationships With Other Charactersedit
In the letter which Lily Potter writes to , and which Harry sees in when he searches Sirius’ room, Lily mentions that Bathilda seems friendly. Rita Skeeter’s book quotes Bathilda as saying that she had tried to be friends with the Dumbledore family but had been rebuffed. One gets the impression that Bathilda is an outgoing person, perhaps one who likes to be the center of a gossip circle.
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Does Queenie Marry Jacob
While initially on the same side as her sister Tina and friend, later brother-in-law Newt Scamander, Queenie was ultimately swayed to join Gellert Grindelwalds side with the offer to be free to love and marry her No-Maj boyfriend Jacob Kowalski, as well as the offer to provide his freedom to others.
How Is Leta Lestrange Related To Bellatrix
The first Fantastic Beasts movie teased the appearance of Leta Lestrange , presumably a relation of the evil Bellatrix Lestrange and her husband Rodolphus Lestrange from the Harry Potter series. We learn that while Leta was Newts girlfriend at some point she is now engaged to his brother Theseus.
Fans might assume from her last name that Leta was intrigued by dark magic, like most of her relatives. But while Letas father was a truly horrible man who used the Imperius Curse to steal another mans wife and impregnate her, Leta the child born of that assault does not inherit her fathers evil inclinations.
Leta feels guilty for switching out her crying baby brother for another baby on a ship to America, just to get a moments rest. When the ship sank, Letas true brother went with it. The other baby survived with Leta. That means that Credence is not a part of the Lestrange family, despite what many in the film suspected. Leta proves her story with a Lestrange family tree that looks similar to the Black family tree featured in Order of the Phoenix.
And at the end of the movie, Leta sacrifices herself in an attempt to fight Grindelwald and save Newt and Theseus. Letas untimely death means that she cannot be a direct ancestor of Bellatrixs husband Rodolphus, since Leta did not have a childat least that we know of. Rodolphus must be descended from another branch of the Lestrange family.
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