It's been a difficult year both personally and professionally for Johnny Depp. 

The death of his mother was swiftly followed by a messy divorce battle with ex-wife Amber Heard which saw him accused of spousal abuse before the charges were later dropped. Professionally he had to deal with the failure of Alice Through the Looking Glass which bombed at the box office.

However this latest bit of casting news might be just the shot in the arm his career needs right now. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Depp has joined the cast of the Fantastic Beasts sequel and will even be making a cameo in the first installment of the franchise, due out later this month. 

Warner Bros. have not revealed who Depp will be playing so we'll just have to watch the movie to get official confirmation. That hasn't stopped fans speculating though and one name is being shouted the loudest on Twitter. 

For those a little rusty on their Harry Potter lore, Gellert Grindelwald was a friend (or possibly more) of Albus Dumbledore in their youth before becoming the most dangerous dark wizard in the pre Voldemort magical world. 

Again, Depp as Grindelwald is purely speculation for now but you'd have to feel that Warner Bros. wouldn't have cast Depp and kept his cameo in the first movie under wraps unless the role was pretty prominent. 

All will be revealed when Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them opens on November 16th.