華納兄弟公司宣布，“哈利波特”系列小說的作者JK羅琳將執筆創作該系列電影的外傳劇本，外傳系列名為“神奇動物及其產地”，與哈利在魔法學校時使用的課本同名。新片的背景定在哈利波特誕生70年前的紐約，故事將圍繞著魔法動物學家紐特?斯卡曼德展開。羅琳表示，新系列電影不是哈利系列的前傳或后傳，而只是魔法世界的延伸。

華納方面表示，該系列是與羅琳“擴展的創造性伙伴關系”的一部分，但未透露電影何時開始制作。羅琳表示，華納最初表示想將“神奇動物在哪里”搬上銀幕時，她認為是個很好的主意，但是如果由別人來撰寫劇本，她會難以接受，因為她對那個魔法世界的每個角色都很愛護；而她正好也有了新的靈感，所以才會有這次合作。“哈利波特”系列小說的全球銷量超過4.5億冊，該系列電影在全世界收獲了超過77億美元的票房，成為有史以來票房收入最高的電影。

?JK Rowling is to make her screenwriting debut in a new Harry Potter-themed film series, Warner Bros has announced.

JK Rowling is to make her screenwriting debut in a new Harry Potter-themed film series, Warner Bros has announced.

The first film of the series will be titled Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Warner Bros said the film series was part of an "expanded creative partnership" with the best-selling author.

The eight Harry Potter films are the largest-grossing film franchise in history.

The new film will feature Newt Scamander, the fictional author of the textbook Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, owned by Harry Potter at Hogwarts school.

Warner Bros has given no indication as to when the film could go into production.

"It all started when Warner Bros came to me with the suggestion of turning Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them into a film," said Rowling.

"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.

"Having lived for so long in my fictional universe, I feel very protective of it and I already knew a lot about Newt. As hard-core Harry Potter fans will know, I liked him so much that I even married his grandson, Rolf, to one of my favourite characters from the Harry Potter series, Luna Lovegood.

She went on: "As I considered Warners' proposal, an idea took shape that I couldn't dislodge. That is how I ended up pitching my own idea for a film to Warner Bros.

"Although it will be set in the worldwide community of witches and wizards where I was so happy for 17 years, 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.

"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, 70 years before Harry's gets underway."

Rowling added: "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."

Warner Bros also announced that it would serve as the worldwide TV distributor (excluding the UK) for the upcoming BBC TV adaptation of Rowling's recent adult novel The Casual Vacancy. It is expected to air in 2014.

More than 450 million copies of Rowling's seven Potter books have been sold worldwide.

She also wrote two small volumes, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Quidditch Through the Ages - both named after Harry's schoolbooks within the novels. They were published in March 2001 in aid of Comic Relief.

Another Potter spin-off book, The Tales of Beedle the Bard, followed in December 2008.

The Harry Potter novels, about a boy wizard who survives the attack that kills his parents, became a worldwide phenomenon and were turned into eight blockbuster Warner Bros films starring Daniel Radcliffe.

The films have grossed more than $7.7bn (￡4.8bn) to date worldwide at the box office, making Harry Potter the largest-grossing film franchise in history.

(Source: BBC News)

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