A Breakdown of the Final “Crimes of Grindelwald” Trailer

SPOILERS AHEAD: PROCEED WITH CAUTION

Now that we’ve had (a little) time to catch our breath, it’s time to dive into the final trailer for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald and explore every detail!

We first see Dumbledore and Newt together. Dumbledore is offering Newt an address for a safe house in Paris “should things go terribly wrong.” What exactly is Dumbledore expecting to happen? And if it’s so dangerous, why is he sending Newt instead of going himself? We’ve heard him say he cannot move against Grindelwald before, but the reasoning behind that decision has yet to be revealed.

We then cut to a Grindelwald voiceover, where he seems to be addressing a crowd, saying, “the clock is ticking faster” to accomplish his dream of witches and wizards taking over the Muggle world, where they “rightfully belong.” We also get a glimpse into Grindelwald’s escape from MACUSA custody, but it’s still unclear whether he had any help in the task. His ominous ultimatum of “join me, or die” seems familiar. It’s becoming increasingly more obvious that Voldemort got many of his ideals from the OG Dark Lord.

Don’t even get us started on the insane reveal that the Maledictus is Nagini! We see Credence and Nagini in cages at the circus surrounded by people. Credence whispers her name to her, and she swiftly transforms into the giant snake we know so well. It will be interesting to see if they show how she meets Voldemort in the later movies.

The trailer then sends us back to Hogwarts, where we get a beautiful aerial view of the castle, as well as glimpses inside the Great Hall, which brings back some feelings of happy nostalgia, but the voice speaking over the scenes is delivering some less-than-happy news.

The wizarding and non-wizarding worlds have been at peace for over a century. Grindelwald wants to see that peace destroyed.

Newt seems a bit uncomfortable with the fact that he is being asked to hunt someone down and kill him. We don’t see who he is talking to in this scene, but the background looks like MACUSA headquarters. If Newt is at the MACUSA headquarters, it is entirely possible that someone could be asking him to find Credence and kill him. After all, the last time MACUSA saw Credence, he destroyed everything in his path, and the MACUSA officials know that Newt is capable of getting Credence to trust him.

Newt is then seen asking Dumbledore why he cannot go after Grindelwald, to which he responds with the familiar “I cannot move against Grindelwald.” What we weren’t expecting, however, was to see a glimpse of Jamie Campbell Bower as young Grindelwald! It’s just for a fleeting second in the Mirror of Erised, but we were still excited to see him. We still aren’t quite sure why it has to be Newt, but we’re certain we’ll get the answers we seek when the film comes out.

The trailer then offers a bit of comic relief as our dynamic duo, Newt and Jacob, are seen walking toward an empty bucket and Newt asking Jacob if he has motion sickness before grabbing his arm and entering the bucket. It could be that this bucket was some sort of Portkey.

In some of the last moments of the trailer, we see Newt encountering some new beasts with Dumbledore expressing his admiration for Newt in a voiceover.

Do you know why I admire you, Newt? You do not seek power. You simply ask, ‘Is this thing right?’

We then hear what seems to be Theseus Scamander telling Newt he is going to have to pick a side. Newt responds in true Newt Scamander fashion, saying, “No. I don’t do sides.” Leta Lestrange is then seen telling Newt, “You never met a monster you couldn’t love” before the trailer cuts to a scene where Grindelwald is seemingly surrounded by Aurors, including Theseus, who says, “Let’s take him!” Something about Grindelwald’s mischevious smile that follows tells us it may not be that simple.

The last few seconds just seem to be clips of chaos. It’s clear that this film is going to be action-packed. The trailer ends with a scene of Newt and Tina meeting Theseus. Newt uses magic to bind Theseus to a chair before saying, “I think that might have been the best moment of my life.”

This trailer definitely had a lot to process. What did you think of it? Let us know in the comments below!