What is the title of J.K. Rowling’s 2016 screenplay set before the Harry Potter stories?
Answer
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
J.K. Rowling’s 2016 screenplay set before the Harry Potter stories is titled Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. It was her screenwriting debut and was published as a screenplay alongside the film’s release.
The film is set in 1926, decades before Harry attends Hogwarts, and follows Newt Scamander in New York City. Newt is a magizoologist carrying a case of magical creatures, some of which escape and cause trouble in the city. Eddie Redmayne plays Newt in the film.
The title comes from a Hogwarts textbook mentioned in the Harry Potter novels. In the fictional world, the textbook is written by Newt Scamander. The 2016 film is therefore both a prequel-era story and an adaptation of a title that first appeared as an in-universe book.