Transcript of interview taken on the set of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore – all copyright to Warner Bros.
– On FB3’s Plot Points
“This film is a continuation from the others and, in this one, we go into more of Grindelwald’s life and we see the next chapter there with Queenie and with him, and what happens with Jacob. And, I think, for me, what really struck me about this one is how it deals with the loss of Leta and the fallout of that – to not just Theseus, but to Kama, her brother, and to everyone else involved, and Newt. The whole magical world just grows even bigger with all these wonderful new creatures, and then alongside it is this very deep, sad story, really, of people dealing with their loss and their pain.”
– On Minerva McGonagall’s Character
“She’s an extraordinary, strong, intelligent woman, but she’s a very fair woman and I think that, not only does she care about other people, but she cares about the whole world – not just the wizarding world, but all the muggles too. And it’s a real pleasure to play somebody with such a strong sense of right, and a strong character, and a strength within her; and a kindness too, even though she is so strong. Yeah, it’s a real pleasure to step into that.”
– On Minerva’s Relationship with Dumbledore
“They are friends, colleagues, know each other well, have a huge amount of respect for each other – he has an enormous amount of respect for her. He can leave Hogwarts completely in her capable hands and I think that this relationship that, by the time we see them in the Fantastic Beasts films, they’ve already been working at it for years. So it’s grown and grown and grown and becomes what it became, sounds so strange, in the Harry Potter films – even though they’re in the future for me, obviously they’re in the past for the rest of us – and that relationship and that strength and that loyalty is very much a part of their relationship.”
– On Jude Law as Dumbledore
“He makes a great Dumbledore because he’s got this great twinkle in his eye, and he’s very grounded as a person, I think, as much as I know him, but you know what I mean – he’s a very grounded individual with a twinkle in his eye and a sense of humour. I think that those things are very much who Dumbledore is, and I think he has that completely. And he’s great fun, he’s a really nice guy, he loves his job, and he loves playing in the moment, in the scenes.”
– On Working with David Yates
“The thing about David is, I’m always so impressed that he’ll be directing you in a tiny moment, and in that tiny moment, in his head, he’s thinking of that moment and the bigger moment around it, the scene around that, the movie around that, the Wizarding World around that. There’s so much that has to be, it seems, in his mind for every single moment that that’s very impressive, there must be a lot of room in there.”
– On What Fans Will Like
“I think that it offers a world of escapism, while at the same time dealing with very difficult topics like death, pain, loss, fear. And I think people can go experience all of those things and get a lot from the characters that they’re watching and the situations they’re in, while still having the safety of the fact that it’s a magical world.”
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore will be available to buy on DVD/BluRay/4K from Monday July 25th.
