Harry Potter Spin-off, FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM, is Going to Be Made into Three Films

JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter book series, is going to write three films based on the 54-page Hogwarts textbook she wrote in 2001. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is following in the footsteps of J.R.R Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings prequel The Hobbit, and will be divided into three stories.

The story of the new trilogy will take place in New York 70 years before the events of Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone, the first Harry Potter book. The story will center around Newt Scamander, a "Magizoologist" who specializes in the study of magical creatures. Rowling said it is neither a prequel nor a sequel, but "an extension of the wizarding world."

The series was announced in September as a project, but last Saturday Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara told the New York Times that the films would be a trilogy. JK Rowling explained in an interview with New York Times that it was Tsujihara who convinced her to make the films. Rowling said, "When I say he made 'Fantastic Beasts happen, it isn't PR-speak but the literal truth. We had one dinner, a follow-up telephone call, and then I got out the rough draft that I'd thought was going to be an interesting bit of memorabilia for my kids and started rewriting!" She then added, "When Kevin got the top job, he brought a new energy, which rubbed off. He's a very engaging person, thoughtful and funny."

Emma Watson, who played Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films, even told MTV News that she'd "definitely be up for a cameo!" Although, there has been no casting for the series, nor has their been a start date for production announced yet.