‘Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald’ Trailer Breakdown: Exploring the Comic-Con Trailer Frame-by-Frame

fantastic beasts the crimes of grindelwald trailer breakdown

Warner Bros. released a new trailer for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindewald following the film’s highly anticipated panel at San Diego Comic-Con. The second film in the five-movie franchise (out November 16, 2018) dramatically expands the world we came to know and love in Harry Potter. But as the wizarding world gears up for war against the dark wizard Grindelwald (Johnny Depp), the second The Crimes of Grindelwald trailer offers a few Easter eggs and nods to the beloved Harry Potter series. And it gives us insight into the intriguing relationship between our hero Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) and his former Hogwarts professor Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law).

Join us on our frame-by-frame Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald breakdown of the Comic-Con trailer.

In a flashback to Newt’s time as a student at Hogwarts, we see him being taught the Boggart-defeating spell “Riddikulus” by Professor Dumbledore in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Boggarts are shapeshifters with the ability to take the form of its victims’ greatest fear — in Newt’s case, a desk. Or rather, having to work in an office, Newt clarifies. The scene offers a nice parallel to Professor Lupin teaching Harry Potter’s class Riddikulus, right down to the very wardrobe that he used.

This scene gives us huge insight into Newt’s personality — he’s unable to hold eye contact with Dumbledore for more than two seconds, he’s fidgety and frightened, but the one thing he’s afraid of the most is to be tied down by society. But this scene is also interesting on a canonical level: Why is Dumbledore teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts? What we know of his time at Hogwarts before he became Headmaster was that he taught Transfiguration for the majority of his career. But it seems that he was also a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor in his early years at Hogwarts — either that, or he flouted the rules and just wanted to teach Riddikulus in class. Which would be totally in keeping with Dumbledore’s personality.

Claudia Kim‘s character still remains mostly a mystery, though this trailer gives us a few more hints. An unidentified Maledictus, Kim’s character is a witch whose blood is cursed, forcing her to turn into a beast. It seems that makes her a prime attraction for the circus, which she can be seen walking into here.

After his unconfirmed fate at the end of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Credence (Ezra Miller) shows up alive and well (and with a much better haircut) at the very wizarding circus where Kim’s Maledictus works. We’ve seen the pair of them together in the trailers and marketing before, but it seems like the circus is where they first meet. Is Credence looking to offer his own Obscurial powers to the circus owner, Skender? Or is he a vigilante looking to free the poor souls employed by the circus?

Here is Grindelwald being detained and taken to prison by a group of Aurors after his initial arrest. Interestingly, this doesn’t look like Azkaban, the wizarding world’s most notorious prison fortress that houses its most dangerous convicts and is guarded by dementors. But it can’t be Nurmengard either — the wizarding prison that Grindelwald built himself to hold his enemies and would ultimately imprison him after his defeat in 1945 until his death in 1998. Maybe that’s why he’s able to escape so easily.

What I thought earlier to be a trial looks actually to be an audience of Grindelwald’s followers as the dark wizard preaches his message of Muggle dominance. “Magic blooms only in rare souls,” Grindelwald proclaims to a captive audience as his assistant Vinda Rosier (Poppy Corby-Tuech) stands nearby. “Still we must skulk in the shadows. But the old ways serve us no longer.”

A strange black, cloth-like element is seen covering all of Paris. While the spell doesn’t seem to be dangerous, we can see Newt and Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston) shielding themselves from the cloth as it moves to cover them.

This is an interesting superimposition. Is this a magical mirage that Grindelwald has conjured up to see Credence? And what part will Credence play in Grindewald’s oncoming war — a useful tool or an obstacle? I never considered how much of a part Credence will play in the battle against Grindelwald, but it seems like he’ll be a much more important character than I realized.

Vinda Rosier appears without Grindelwald for the first time, though she’s still as snazzily dressed as before. But she has her eyes on a distraught…someone. Judging by their silhouette and bowed head, I would guess it’s Newt or his brother Theseus (Callum Turner). Perhaps Vinda is attempting to recruit Theseus to Grindelwald’s side.

Credence and the unidentified Maldetictus are covertly walking through a crowded marketplace filled with cages. They’ve teamed up for some reason — but for what?

WHAT THE HELL ARE THESE CREEPY CAT THINGS. DOES ANYONE KNOW.

“I can’t move against Grindelwald,” Dumbledore sadly admits to Newt, as the trailer cuts to a scene of Dumbledore looking in the Mirror of Erised and seeing a reflection of Grindelwald. The Mirror of Erised shows the viewer their deepest desire — something that has clearly changed as Dumbledore as gotten older. An elderly Dumbledore told Harry Potter that the only thing he saw when he looked into the Mirror was himself holding a pair of socks, but the young Dumbledore clearly desires Grindelwald. This is a nod to the two powerful wizards’ past relationship as possible lovers, and will probably be the closest reference we’ll see in this movie to Dumbledore’s sexuality.

In the second of Dumbledore and Newt’s clandestine meetings over Grindelwald, Dumbledore cheerfully tries to recruit Newt in his hunt for the dark wizard. “It has to be you,” he tells Newt. “In your shoes, I’d probably refuse too.” We’ll probably learn why Dumbledore is so intent that this pacifist magizoologist is the best bet to bring down Grindelwald, but for now, we’re as confused as Newt.