Cover reveal for “Secrets of Dumbledore” screenplay

Mar 31, 2022

Posted by: Amanda Kirk

Books, Fantastic Beasts, Fantastic Beasts Movie, Movies

On 24th March, Wizarding World revealed the cover for the screenplay for Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. The cover resembles the movie posters and marks a departure from the covers for the screenplays of the two previous Fantastic Beasts films, which were both designed by MinaLima. It is disappointing that the new cover does not match the previous designs — ideally, one would eventually own all five screenplays as a matched set. Since MinaLima continues to do incredibly apt and engaging design work for the franchise, creating the graphic art for the upcoming film, which is currently on display at their London headquarters, it is baffling why this cover was not contracted to them as well. It is possible that a matching cover will be released at a later date. Re-releasing the original book series, as well as Potterverse companion books, in new trappings has been a way for the franchise to generate more revenue. Most of us fans have multiple versions of official Potter-related books with artwork by different artists and various slipcases, boxes, and themes, such as house colours.

Leaving aside the consistency and matching aspects with the previous screenplay covers, there is also the fact that those covers contained clues to the stories within the illustrations. Perusing the covers for clues about the films was part of the fun. About their Crimes of Grindelwald cover, MinaLima said: ‘The Art Nouveau aesthetic is so strong in this film. The costumes, the architecture, the colours: that all felt like something we should really push. So while there are Easter eggs and hidden gems in here, they’re all knitted in with these swirls and flourishes that really follow that traditional aesthetic.’

The new cover evokes the movie posters, featuring a phoenix, associated with the Dumbledore family, gliding over the lake towards Hogwarts castle. Both the phoenix and the setting sun light the scene but the overall vibe is dark and ominous, fitting for the approach of the darkness of war in both the Muggle and magical worlds.

Inside, in addition to the screenplay itself, the book includes a foreward by David Yates and behind-the-scenes commentary and insights from producers David Heyman, stars Eddie Redmayne, and Jude Law, and production designers Colleen Atwood and MinaLima.

Wizarding World suggests examining the cover for clues but the photograph-style image is more challenging to search for clues than the previous graphic design covers. Have you spotted anything? Tell us in the comments.

The Secrets of Dumbledore screenplay will be released on 19th July by Little, Brown in the U.K., Scholastic in the U.S. and Canada, and Pottermore Publishing for the ebook.





The Leaky Cauldron is not associated with J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., or any of the individuals or companies associated with producing and publishing Harry Potter books and films.