Mads Mikkelsen In Early Talks To Replace Johnny Depp In 'Fantastic Beasts 3'

After being a part of highly successful movie franchises like “James Bond” and “Doctor Strange,” actor Mads Mikkelsen is set to add one more feather to his cap by replacing Johnny Depp in the upcoming “Fantastic Beasts” movie.

Mikkelsen is in talks to play the role of villain Gellert Grindelwald in the third installment of the fantasy film series, Variety first reported. Colin Farrell also played the infamous dark wizard in the first “Fantastic Beasts” movie in 2016, with the character going by another identity.

The character was later revealed to be Grindelwald, with the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star taking on the role at the very end of the first movie. Depp reprised the role in the second movie that came out in 2018.

Warner Bros. recently asked Depp to “resign” from the role after losing his libel suit against British tabloid The Sun, which alleged that the actor physically assaulted his ex-wife, Amber Heard. In Depp’s post on Instagram, he expressed gratitude toward his fans for all the support despite losing the libel case.

Depp then announced that he has agreed to step down from the role and assured his followers that he will continue his fight.

“I wish to let you know that I have been asked to resign by Warner Bros. from my role as Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts and I have respected and agreed to that request,” Depp wrote on the image-sharing platform.

The third movie in the series, which stars Eddie Redmayne in the lead role, is currently in production and scheduled to hit theaters in 2022.

Mikkelsen is considered one of the finest actors of this generation and has worked in many big Hollywood projects. Born in 1965, he started his professional career by appearing in a short film called “Blomsterfangen” in 1996.

It did not take much time for him to make a mark and give one of his finest performances in the movie “Pusher.” The film turned out to be a huge success for Mikkelsen and made him a star in his own right.

His stupendous acting skills in the movie “Flickering Lights” took his popularity to a whole new level.

Apart from the aforementioned movies, Mikkelsen has worked in various film and TV projects like “Casino Royale,” “Hannibal,” “Open Hearts,” “Prague,” “The Hunt,” “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” “Arctic” and “Polar.”