Lately, it seems that the Harry Potter franchise has been struggling. The J.K. Rowling twitter memes have been going pretty strong for a while, and even before that started, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald was a box office disappointment and not a major critical success.
Now Warner Brothers is worried about Fantastic Beasts 3. Not only was the movie’s production date pushed back but according to Screen Rant, the studio is starting to worry about how the drama surrounding their star, Johnny Depp, affecting their movie’s success. In the series, Depp plays the criminal wizard, Gellert Grindelwald, who is an important character.
Depp has been accused of abusing his ex-wife, Amber Heard, and a lawsuit is being filed against Depp. Page Six provides a more detailed account of the situation. When Heard came forward about the abuse she suffered during their two years of marriage, Depp filed a Defamation Lawsuit against her. Depp continues to deny the allegations brought against him and yet, some new reports say that he tried to get Heard kicked off of Aquaman.
All this controversy surrounding Depp might lead to him being fired from Fantastic Beasts 3, despite the fact that he received support from J.K. Rowling back in 2017. Many of Warner Brothers’ female executives are afraid to work with him, and the studio is concerned about how his casting will affect their movie’s profits. Perhaps the disappointing release of the previous movie is making the studio more cautious about how they handle the rest of the franchise.