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LONDON (Reuters) – Production of the third film “Fantastic Beasts” has been halted after a member of the team tested positive for COVID-19, Warner Bros. Pictures Thursday.
The franchise, a spin-off of the “Harry Potter” books and films, stars Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne as “magizoologist” Newt Scamander.
Filming began in September at Warner Bros. Studios in Leavesden, near London, after the pandemic delayed the start of March 2020, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“A member of the Fantastic Beasts 3 team has tested positive for COVID-19. The diagnosis has been confirmed following mandatory and ongoing testing that all production employees receive, and the team member is currently isolated, “said a spokesperson for Warner Bros. Pictures said in a statement.
“As a precaution, Fantastic Beasts 3 has discontinued production and will be back under safety guidelines.”
The declaration does not give any additional details.
The “Fantastic Beasts” films are set about 70 years before “Harry Potter” and include younger versions of author JK Rowling’s characters like Albus Dumbledore, played by Jude Law.
The upcoming film, slated for release in July 2022, also sees Mads Mikkelsen play the role of evil wizard Gellert Grindelwald, originally played by Johnny Depp.
Depp was asked to leave the franchise late last year after losing a libel case to a UK tabloid which called him a ‘wife beater’.
(This story is repeated to correct the typo in paragraph 8)
(Reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Gareth Jones)
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