Known for playing a colourful range of characters, Johnny Depp has now reportedly landed a role in the second Harry Potter spin-off Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them. According to Deadline, the Hollywood star will also have a brief cameo in the first movie - although it is not yet known which role he will play.
The news may not come as a surprise since Johnny, 53, has a fondness for starring in franchises, having starred in the live-action Alice films and The Pirates of the Caribbean.
The first Fantastic Beasts, which sees British star Eddie Redmayne take on the lead role of magizoologist Newt Scamander, will open in UK and US cinemas on 18 November.
© Photo: PAJohnny Depp has reportedly landed a role in the second Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them film
The highly-anticipated movie is set prior to the events of the Harry Potter series in 1920's New York City, and follows magizoologist Newt after he accidentally releases a host of magical creatures and attempts to round them up before they wreak havoc in the city. Described as an outsider and "a bit awkward", Newt was once a student at Hogwarts but was expelled for endangering human life with a beast.
Meanwhile, a brief synopsis for the darker sequel was recently released: "The second Fantastic Beasts movie moves deeper into an increasingly dark time for the wizarding world, where Newt and our other heroes have to decide on their allegiances."
During a global fan event in London last month, author JK Rowling revealed she has plans to write scripts for at least four further Fantastic Beasts films.
The first Fantastic Beasts will open in UK and US cinemas on 18 November
"We always knew it was going to be more than one movie, and we said a trilogy as a placeholder," she told the audience. "But I’ve done the plotting properly and I'm pretty sure it's going to be five movies."
Speaking about the franchise, Eddie, 34, said JK Rowling "has the most extraordinary imagination of our generation and she has created something entirely different. That world is spilling out of her head in a unique way."
The author later took to her Twitter page to clarify the news and said she will be penning the script, by tweeting: "Not 'at least' Five. Five movies." She later added: "I'm the screenwriter. Currently putting the finishing touches to the second one."
