How many Fantastic Beasts films exist
As of 2024, there are five released Fantastic Beasts films and no confirmed new episodes in active production. The series includes Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016), The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018), The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022), plus two planned films that were cancelled mid-production. This overview lists each film’s release year, canonical status, and performance where verified, and clarifies which entries remain planned, postponed, or effectively ended.
Released films and key status
The core library of the Fantastic Beasts series consists of three widely available Wizarding World titles, anchored by J.K. Rowling’s original screenplay for the first two entries. The fourth and fifth films were publicly announced and partially filmed before being halted; their future remains uncertain. Below is a compact, source-aligned summary of each film’s verified attributes.
| Title | Release year | Canonical status | Box office (global) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them | 2016 | Confirmed | About $814 million | Introduces Newt Scamander; prequel to the original series |
| Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald | 2018 | Confirmed | About $654 million | Second installment; timeline moves closer to the main saga |
| Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore | 2022 | Confirmed | About $407 million | Third released film; concludes the Grindelwald arc |
| Fantastic Beasts 4 | — (planned, halted) | Unreleased | — | Script completed; production ceased around 2022 |
| Fantastic Beasts 5 | — (planned, paused) | Unreleased | — | Earlier plans included a finale; status remains unclear |
Planned and cancelled entries
Warner Bros. and J.K. Rowling originally outlined a five-film arc, with the fourth intended to deepen the conflict and the positioned as a conclusion. Production on the fourth film wrapped in 2021, but it was shelved amid legal, reputational, and creative challenges. In early 2023, the studio stated the fifth film was not moving forward, effectively narrowing the series to three commercially released entries. Industry coverage indicates scripts for both cancelled chapters exist, but no greenlight or start date has been confirmed.
Behind the halt
Multiple credible outlets reported that the fourth film was largely complete in the can when production was frozen. Delays mounted through 2022 and into 2023, with talent schedules, union concerns, and public controversies contributing to the decision to pause. By early 2023, Warner Bros. officially deprioritized the planned finale, focusing instead on other Wizarding World content and legacy properties. These moves align with broader studio recalibrations toward safer franchises and controlled risk.
How to count the series reliably
For an evergreen answer, define what counts as a Fantastic Beasts film: a theatrically released, studio-backed feature bearing the official title and contributing to the primary narrative continuity. Under this standard, three films are complete and widely available, while two others remain planned but unproduced. Streaming specials, shorts, and theme park content are excluded from this count because they do not meet the theatrical, narrative threshold.
- Three released films: 2016, 2018, 2022
- Two planned but unproduced entries: referred to as Fantastic Beasts 4 and 5
- No active production as of 2024
- Canonical arc currently concludes with Dumbledore (2022)
Context and comparisons
Viewers often compare this franchise to broader Wizarding World outputs, including the main Harry Potter saga and spin-off programming. Unlike those entries, Fantastic Beasts operates as a smaller, more contained prequel line intended to explore early magical history and major figures like Grindelwald. Its reduced scale and tighter planned scope distinguish it from the eight core Harry Potter films and from ongoing streaming-first initiatives within the wider universe.
What to expect next
As of now, the official roadmap narrows to the three films that have already debuted. No new greenlights have been announced, and public statements suggest creative focus has shifted to other priorities. Fans hoping for a conclusion should anticipate that the story arc introduced in the first three movies stands as the finalized version, while ideas from the shelved scripts may evolve into other formats or remain unrealized.