It's been a long time coming, but now it's official - Oscar-winning actor Eddie Redmayne has been confirmed for Harry Potter spinoff Fantastic Beasts (And Where To Find Them).

Redmayne will play Newt Scamander, a magizoologist whose travels across the globes looking for said fantastic creatures leads him to write a book about them that's a part of the curriculum in Hogwarts.

The book was written by JK Rowling for Comic Relief, with over 80% of the cover price going directly to the charity event.

Warner Bros. has been keen to spin as much out from Harry Potter as they possibly can, so Fantastic Beats was an obvious choice.

There's been no word on plot yet, however it's understood that our own Saorise Ronan, Katherine Waterston and (gulp) Kate Upton have all screentested for various roles in the film.

The film also marks JK Rowling's first attempt at screenwriting, with Potter veteran David Yates returning to direct.

So, thoughts? You remember before The Hobbit came out? How we were all excited about returning to Middle-Earth?

Remember that feeling. Remember it. And remember what came after.

Look, we're not discounting what they've got going on here. However, there's a lot to be said for managed expectations.

Good or bad, it'll make a metric f**kton of money. So, y'know, that's something.

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