It appears "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" has found its lead star. According to multiple online news sources, Eddie Redmayne, who rose to stardom with his Oscar-winning role in "Theory of Everything," has been offered to portray "magizoologist" Newt Scamander.

Variety first reported that Redmayne was actually the front runner among the stars who were considered for the lead role in the upcoming Warner Bros. film. Aside from his stellar portrayal of Stephen Hawking in “Theory of Everything,” he has also starred in “My Week with Marilyn” and “Les Miserables.”

Redmayne was reportedly intrigued about Scamander’s storyline, but he had wanted to read a finished script first before thinking about whether or not he would accept the lead role offer.

“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” is the title of a book written by Scamander. It was a textbook that Harry Potter and the rest of his friends were tasked to study as it tackled the topic of magical beasts.

The actual book was written by J.K. Rowling.

According to Screen Rant, the film will chronicle Scamander’s experiences and adventures in the secret community of wizards and witches in New York – seventy years before Potter was even born.

Still, despite some clear connections to the “Harry Potter” franchise, Rowling has reiterated in a statement that “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” must not be viewed as a prequel or a sequel. Instead, it must be regarded as “an extension of the wizarding world.”

Apart from Scamander, the film will also be featuring two American girls and two American boys. To date, no actors or actresses have been chosen for these roles. Apparently, director David Yates and Warner Bros. were ready to discuss their plans for the two female leads, but they had both wanted to make sure that Redmayne was fully on board with them.

A trilogy in the works?

The New York Times previously reported that "three mega movies" are planned for the story. However, producer David Heyman has stated that, despite some sequel plans, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” will be developed and regarded as a standalone project -- at least for now.

"We're making just one film, but I believe there's been talk about it being three. But we're just talking about it as one," he told Collider.

“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” has already been scheduled to premiere in the U.S. on November 18, 2016, while the studio has somewhat reserved November 16, 2018 and November 20, 2020 as the release dates of the possible sequels.

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