"Fantastic Beasts" Director Disappoints, Saying Dumbledore Won't Be "Explicitly" Gay in Sequel

David Yates, director of Fantastic Beasts and its upcoming sequel The Crimes of Grindelwald, must be getting used to disappointing fans by now.

First, he earned the ire of the internet by saying he wouldn’t replace Johnny Depp in the role of Grindelwald, despite the domestic violence allegations made against him by ex-wife Amber Heard.

(Depp was revealed to be Grindelwald at the end of the first Fantastic Beasts, replacing Colin Farrell in what is easily the worst trade in fantasy-cinema history, though it’s a shortlist that only really includes the replacement of Stuart Townsend with Viggo Mortensen in Lord of the Rings, which we’re fine with.)

Now, Yates is breaking the bad news that Albus Dumbledore—played by Jude Law—won’t be “explicitly” gay in the flick, despite the lore that he was apparently Grindelwald’s lover.

IT'S LITERALLY THE MOVIE ABOUT DUMBLEDORE AND HIS BOYFRIEND WHO TURNS EVIL

— Kristen Lyssara (@krislyssara) January 31, 2018

When asked by EW if the film would deal with Dumbledore’s sexuality, he said, “not explicitly.”

“But I think all the fans are aware of that. He had a very intense relationship with Grindelwald when they were young men. They fell in love with each other’s ideas, and ideology and each other.”

Unfortunately, that flies in the face of author and screenwriter J.K. Rowling’s promise from 2016.

jkr: dumbledore is gay lol
fans: okay but u didn't put it in the source material
jkr: i know lol
*ten years later*
fans: okay you've got a chance to put it in canon now
jkr: hehe lol i know
fans: so are you gonna
jkr: no lol

— lucy (@_avasharpe) January 31, 2018

Though Dumbledore’s sexuality was never referenced in the book series, Rowling confirmed his orientation elsewhere, and if anyone could make it canonical, it’d be her.

She told Variety last year that, in this sequel, we’d “see him at that formative period of his life.”

“As far as his sexuality is concerned, watch this space."

Well, you can probably stop watching that space, if Yates’ latest comments are to be believed.

Then again, there are apparently going to be five Fantastic Beasts movies, total, so you’d have to imagine they’d cover it in at least one. Right?

Lol. There are actually fans using the "being openly gay wouldn't make sense for the time period" argument re: Dumbledore. You can accept three headed dogs, invisibility cloaks, and Aberforth's "affinity" for goats, but not an openly gay dude in the 20th century?

— Sarah Sterling (@SarahSterling_) January 31, 2018

The Crimes of Grindelwald arrives in cinemas this November.

Photo: Warner Bros