It is weird to think about now, but there was a moment in 2016 when we all thought the Wizarding World was about to enter a golden age of expansion. Everyone was ready. The first film dropped, and the initial rating for Fantastic Beasts was actually pretty solid. People liked Newt Scamander. They liked the Niffler. It felt like a cozy, slightly more adult return to the universe we grew up with. But then things got messy.
Real messy.
By the time the third movie, The Secrets of Dumbledore, limped into theaters in 2022, the conversation had shifted from "look at that cool monster" to "what is even happening with this plot?" If you look at the trajectory of the rating for Fantastic Beasts across the trilogy, you aren’t just looking at movie scores; you’re looking at a case study in how a massive franchise can lose its way by trying to do too much at once.
The Numbers Don't Lie (Usually)
Let’s talk raw data for a second because the decline is actually pretty staggering when you see it laid out. The first film, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, holds a 74% on Rotten Tomatoes. That’s a respectable "Fresh" rating. Most critics agreed that Eddie Redmayne brought a twitchy, endearing energy to Newt that felt fresh.
Then came The Crimes of Grindelwald.
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That movie sits at a dismal 36%. Honestly, that’s a brutal drop. Usually, a sequel might dip 10 or 15 points, but a 38-point nose-dive suggests something went fundamentally wrong with the storytelling. The third installment, The Secrets of Dumbledore, recovered slightly to 46%, but the damage was already done. The audience wasn't showing up anymore. Box office totals reflected this perfectly: the first film made over $800 million, while the third barely scraped past $400 million. In the world of high-budget blockbusters, that’s basically a disaster.
Why the Rating for Fantastic Beasts Tanked So Hard
You can’t point to just one thing. It’s a mix of behind-the-scenes drama and a script that felt like it was fighting itself.
One of the biggest issues was the identity crisis. Is this a movie about a magical zoologist looking for escaped creatures in New York? Or is it a political thriller about the rise of a wizarding fascist in 1930s Europe? The "Fantastic Beasts" title became a literal albatross around the neck of the Grindelwald/Dumbledore story. You had these incredibly high-stakes scenes about the fate of the world interrupted by a ten-minute sequence of Newt trying to catch a glowing moose. It felt disjointed.
The fans felt it too.
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Then you have the casting shifts. Replacing Johnny Depp with Mads Mikkelsen as Grindelwald was a move that divided the internet. While many critics actually preferred Mikkelsen’s more grounded, manipulative portrayal, the constant shuffling of the "big bad" made the trilogy feel unstable.
The Bloated Narrative Problem
J.K. Rowling wrote these screenplays herself. While she’s a master of the novel format, screenwriting is a totally different beast. Characters like Queenie Goldstein had arcs that felt forced—turning her into a villainous sympathizer in the second movie felt like a betrayal to many who loved her in the first. There were too many characters to keep track of. Leta Lestrange, Yusuf Kama, Credence Barebone—everyone had a "secret lineage" or a hidden motivation.
It was exhausting.
The rating for Fantastic Beasts suffered because the movies stopped being fun. They became homework. You needed to remember family trees and obscure lore just to understand why a character was standing in a specific room.
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Comparison to the Original Harry Potter Run
If we compare the rating for Fantastic Beasts to the original eight Potter films, the difference in consistency is wild.
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is at 96%.
- Prisoner of Azkaban is at 90%.
- The "lowest" rated Potter film is Order of the Phoenix at 78%.
Notice something? The lowest-rated Harry Potter movie is still rated higher than the highest-rated Fantastic Beasts movie. That tells you everything you need to know about the execution. The original series had the benefit of being based on beloved books that had already been edited and veted. The prequel series was being built on the fly, and it showed.
What This Means for the Future of the Franchise
Is there a world where we see a fourth movie? Probably not. Warner Bros. Discovery has been pretty quiet about Newt’s future lately. They seem to be pivoting toward the Harry Potter TV series for Max, which makes sense. Why fight for a 46% rating when you can reboot the 96% rating?
The rating for Fantastic Beasts serves as a warning for other franchises. You can’t just rely on a brand name to carry a weak story. People want to care about the characters, not just the "universe." Newt Scamander deserved better than being a side character in his own franchise.
Actionable Takeaways for Movie Buffs and Collectors
If you’re a fan or a collector looking at this series, here is the move.
- Focus on the First Movie: If you’re building a physical media collection, the first film stands alone perfectly well as a whimsical adventure. You don't actually need the sequels to enjoy it.
- Watch for Mikkelsen: Even if the third movie is a mess, Mads Mikkelsen’s performance is genuinely great. It’s worth a watch just to see how a different actor handles the role of Grindelwald with more subtlety.
- Check the Screenplay Books: If you're a lore nerd, the published screenplays actually include some stage directions and internal character thoughts that didn't make it to the screen. Sometimes they help clarify the confusing plot points that dragged the ratings down.
- Manage Expectations for the Reboot: With the Harry Potter TV show on the horizon, expect the "Fantastic Beasts" lore to be largely ignored. Don't get too invested in the "Aurelius Dumbledore" plotline—it’s likely a dead end.
The magic isn't gone from the world, but it definitely took a hit here. Understanding why these movies landed the way they did helps us appreciate the stuff that actually works. We'll always have the Niffler, even if the plot was a total vanishing act.