Colin Farrell is the latest actor to join the much anticipated "Harry Potter" spin-off "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," Entertainment Weekly confirmed. The actor will join Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller and Alison Sudol, who have already been cast in the film.
Farrell plays Graves, a wizard that Newt Scamander meets in New York City, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The story of "Fantastic Beasts" centers on Scamander's adventures in the secret community of witches and wizards as he attempts to document magical creatures.
"I would like to be in something like that," Farrell tells MTV about participating in the Harry Potter universe in 2008. "That would be genius."
"'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them' is neither a prequel nor a sequel to the Harry Potter series, but an extension of the wizarding world," Rowling says in a statement. "The laws and customs of the hidden magical society will be familiar to anyone who has read the Harry Potter books or seen the films, but Newt's story will start in New York, seventy years before Harry's gets underway."
David Yates, who directed the last four Potter films, is set to dive into the universe once again as the director for "Fantastic Beasts." The screenplay is written by Potter author J.K. Rowling and is going to be produced by David Heyman, who produced all eight Potter films.
Farrell is currently starring on HBO's second season of "True Detective." "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" is slated for a December 2016 release.
