Warner Bros. Releases A Statement On Johnny Depp Leaving The Fantastic Beasts Franchise

Warner Bros. Pictures has released a statement in which they addressed Johnny Depp leaving the Fantastic Beasts franchise. I must admit that I was rather taken aback when Johnny Depp posted a statement on Instagram in which he revealed he’d been asked to resign as Grindelwald from the Fantastic Beats movies.

I didn’t much care for those films, yet I did think that Depp’s performance as Grindelwald was the best thing in them. However, after Depp lost his libel case against The Sun in the UK courts, it sounds as if the writing was on the wall for the actor.

Since then, Warner Bros. Pictures also released a statement in which they thanked Depp for his time in the franchise, and they also revealed that the role of Grindelwald will be recast. This really does seem like a huge blow to Johnny Depp and his career.

Warner Bros. Pictures breaks its silence on Johnny Depp leaving the Fantastic Beasts franchise

Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

Read more: Johnny Depp Quits Grindelwald Role In The Fantastic Beasts Harry Potter Franchise

Here’s what Warner Bros. Pictures’ statement said (via ComicBook.com):

Johnny Depp will depart the ‘Fantastic Beasts’ franchise. We thank Johnny for his work on the films to date. ‘Fantastic Beasts 3’ is currently in production, and the role of Gellert Grindelwald will be recast. The film will debut in theaters worldwide in the summer of 2022.

There were calls to have Johnny Depp be fired after he was cast due to the fact that he was a suspected domestic abuser. However, back then, Warner Bros. Pictures and J.K. Rowling stood by the casting decision, and Rowling issued a public statement, saying:

Based on our understanding of the circumstances, the filmmakers and I are not only comfortable sticking with our original casting but genuinely happy to have Johnny playing a major character in the movies.

What do you make of this news? Were you shocked to hear about Johnny Depp being asked to leave the Fantastic Beasts franchise? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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