2) A Visit To Ilvermorny
Any hardcore fans who scour online resource Pottermore for new information will know that Rowling revealed a lot of new facts about North American Magical school Ilvermorny prior to the release of Fantastic Beasts. Everything from its origins, to its customs to its house mascots was made public. It was surprising to find out, then, that the school did not appear in the movie. The only hint at its existence was a single namedrop, in a humorous argument between Newt and Queenie over which school is better.
Despite our wish to explore other countries, now that Rowling has whet our appetite for Ilvermorny we want to get the chance to see the place in action. British kids have daydreamed about receiving Hogwarts letters for years now, and American kids deserve to have their own magical school to fantasize about, too.
1) Newt’s Character Deepened
Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne offered up a winning, measured and physical performance as Newt Scamander. Shy, awkward and hiding behind his floppy hair, Newt only came to life when around his animals and Redmayne made his adoration for his wide variety of pet creatures plain.
What wasn’t so plain, however, were the other aspects of his personality. Redmayne tried his best but the character Rowling put on the page was not all that fleshed out in this first film. For the sequels, we really want to get a better feel for Newt the person rather than Newt the creature-catching adventurer.
The one thing that stuck out about his character in the first movie was the reveal of his childhood sweetheart. Apparently in his Hogwarts days his best friend was Leta Lestrange – yes, one of the dark wizarding family that Sirius’ cousin Bellatrix later marries into. It seems that, despite being a kind soul in her youth, Leta reverted to the family ways at some point. Something which left Newt heart-broken, and properly caused him to retreat for people and commit himself to the animal kingdom.
X-Men: First Class‘ Zoe Kravitz is already confirmed to play Leta in the sequel (after appearing briefly in a photo in the first film). Let’s hope that Newt’s old flame entering his life again brings out some interesting new sides to him, because as it stands, Rowling has her work cut out in making Newt as widely popular as Harry, Ron and Hermione.