JK Rowling to write new Harry Potter spin-offs
New films will be set in wizarding universe of Harry Potter, but will not be prequels or sequels
J.K. Rowling is to make her screenwriting debut by penning a series of Harry Potter spin-off films, putting her in line for a huge payday.
The first film will be called Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and will be based on a textbook of the same name used by Harry and his classmates at their school, Hogwarts, Rowling announced.
I always said that I would only revisit the wizarding world if I had an idea that I was really excited about and this is it
Set in New York and featuring zoologist Newt Scamander - the author of Harry's textbook - it will be set in the magical world of the British boy wizard, but 70 years before the events at the core of the Potter novels.
The film comes two years after the final movie in the eight-part series spawned by her phenomenally successful novels.
"I always said that I would only revisit the wizarding world if I had an idea that I was really excited about and this is it," the 48-year-old Rowling said.
She pitched the idea to Warner Bros. herself after the US studio inquired about making Fantastic Beasts into a film.
"I thought it was a fun idea, but the idea of seeing Newt Scamander, the supposed author of Fantastic Beasts, realised by another writer was difficult," she wrote.