Which J.K. Rowling book was adapted into her first produced screenplay?

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was adapted into J.K. Rowling’s first produced screenplay.

The 2016 film was written by Rowling and directed by David Yates. It expands the wizarding world beyond the Harry Potter storyline and follows magizoologist Newt Scamander in New York City in 1926. Eddie Redmayne plays Newt, with Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, and Colin Farrell among the principal cast.

The title had previously appeared as a fictional Hogwarts textbook and as a 2001 charity book credited to Newt Scamander. The film is not a direct adaptation of a conventional Rowling novel; Rowling developed the screenplay as an original story using the established wizarding setting.

The movie began the Fantastic Beasts film series. Its follow-ups were The Crimes of Grindelwald in 2018 and The Secrets of Dumbledore in 2022. This screenwriting work differs from Rowling’s role as a producer on several Harry Potter films.