J.K. Rowling confirms four Fantastic Beasts sequels are on the way

Author J.K. Rowling has revealed new movie Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them will be the first of five.

The magical Harry Potter spin-off, starring Eddie Redmayne, will hit cinemas next month (Nov16) and at a special event promoting the movie in London on Thursday (13Oct16), the celebrated novelist confirmed she will be penning several additional follow-up screenplays after discussing the future of the franchise with movie executives.

“We always knew it was going to be more than one movie,” she teased of the future Fantastic Beasts franchise instalments. "I’ve now done the plotting properly, so we’re pretty sure it’s gonna be five movies.”

Meanwhile, fans can barely contain their excitement over the impending debut of Fantastic Beasts, a film adaptation of the Harry Potter series companion novel Rowling wrote in 2001.

The new movie centers on 'magizoologist' Newt Scamander, played by Redmayne, as he battles to keep the peace within New York City's secret society of witches and wizards, 70 years before famous wizard Harry Potter is born.

And although Eddie is delighted to have landed the lead role in the film, the star confesses he felt "enormous pressure" throughout the shoot to please the most devoted Harry Potter fans.

“We were all fans and we grew up watching these films,” he explained. “For me, getting to go and see a Potter film every couple of years was like diving into that warm cosy place that made you feel happy about the world... We had quite high expectations on ourselves; we didn’t want to screw it up."

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, which also features Colin Farrell, Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller, and Alison Sudol will hit theaters worldwide on 18 November (16). The second Fantastic Beasts film is already in pre-production, and due in cinemas in November, 2018.