Fantastic Beasts 3 recast has Mads Mikkelsen as top choice to replace Depp as Grindelwald

Fantastic Beasts 3 is an upcoming fantasy film in the Wizard World franchise. Johnny Depp played dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald in the previous films. But the actor has stepped down from the role after he was asked to resign from the franchise. Warner Bros. will recast the character and now Hannibal fame Mads Mikkelsen is said to be the front runner for it.

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Mads Mikkelsen in talks to replace Johnny Depp as Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts

According to a recent report in Deadline, Mads Mikkelsen is considered as the top choice to replace Johnny Depp as Gellert Grindelwald in the upcoming Fantastic Beasts films. He is currently in early talks with Warner Bros. Mikkelsen is said to be the choice of Fantastic Beasts 3 director David Yates to portray the character ahead. The reason behind the fast casting is to keep the project on track after its release date delay.

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Earlier, Johnny Depp essayed the antagonist, Gellert Grindelwald in the first two movies. The actor was originally set to reprises the character again in Fantastic Beasts 3. But Warner Bros. asked him to resign from the series, a few days after Depp lost his libel case against The Sun tabloid over its 2018 article alleging, he was a “wife beater” to Amber Heard. He mentioned in a statement that he respects the request and agreed to depart from the series.

Johnny Depp reportedly shot only one scene for Fantastic Beasts 3 when it began production in September in London. However, the actor will get his full salary which is around $10 million due to his contract. Depp signed to play Grindelwald in nearly five Fantastic Beasts movies.

Now as Mads Mikkelsen is the front runner he would appear in other films, too, becoming an integral part of the Harry Potter spinoff.  It is said that filmmaker David Yates is a big fan of Mikkelsen and that the Danish actor is the guy the makers are trying to lock-in. Colin Farrell was among the lead fan choice as he has already depicted Grindelwald in disguise. But due to his scheduling conflict, as he is filming The Batman, Farrell cannot replace Johnny Depp.

Also Read | 'Fantastic Beasts 3' Release Date Delayed To 2022 Following Johnny Depp's Departure

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Fantastic Beasts 3 cast has Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Jude Law, Callum Turner, Alison Sudol, and Jessica Williams. The screenplay is co-written by J. K. Rowling and Steve Kloves, from a story by Rowling. The movie is currently scheduled to release on 15 July 2022.