'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them': See 9 Magical Character Posters

In a little over a month, J.K. Rowling will introduce us to a new era of her wizarding world. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, out Nov. 18, follows British wizard Newt Scamander as he travels to New York City in 1926, only to get swept up in a madcap adventure across the city. EW has nine exclusive posters from the film, introducing the magical and non-magical characters of this tale, and the gorgeous posters are packed with detail — including one intriguing aspect that suggests a connection between Fantastic Beasts and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows...

J.K. Rowling's new hero is a former Hogwarts Hufflepuff and a lifelong advocate for magical creatures. Expelled from Hogwarts for "endangering human life with a beast," Newt now travels the globe as a magizoologist, finding and documenting the wizarding world's many magical beasts. His travels take him to New York City in 1926, but soon after he arrives in the United States with his case full of creatures, several escape, wreaking havoc throughout the city and threatening to expose the witches and wizards of New York.

Porpentina Goldstein — that's Tina for short — was once an Auror for the Magical Congress of the United States of America, but she was demoted to the wand permit division after "her heart overruled her head and she used unauthorized magic." She lives with her younger sister, Queenie. 

Jacob Kowalski is a No-Maj (which is what witches and wizards call Muggles in America), and he works in a cannery. He dreams of becoming a baker but is unable to secure a loan, and his life changes forever when he meets Newt and his menagerie of magical creatures.

Seraphina Picquery became the president of MACUSA in 1920. She's a powerful and formidable witch, dedicated to maintaining the secrecy of the American wizarding community. 

Queenie is Tina's quirky younger sister and roommate, who works alongside her in the wand permit department at MACUSA. Unlike her ambitious sister, who dreams of taking back her job as an Auror, Queenie is more of a free spirit who doesn't care too much about her career. (Although the two sisters have slightly different personalities, they're fiercely loyal and would do anything for each other.) Queenie is also a Legilimens, meaning that she can read minds. 

Mary Lou Barebone is a No-Maj and the fanatical leader of the New Salem Philanthropic Society (a.k.a. the Second Salemers), having dedicated her life to seeking out and destroying witches and wizards. She's enlisted her three adopted children — two daughters and a son — in her crusade against magic, and all three of them "live in fear of her wrath." 

Credence Barebone is the most withdrawn and shy of Mary Lou's three adopted children, and he live in fear of her tyrannical rules. Soon, however, he finds himself befriended by the manipulative Percival Graves, who takes "a personal interest" in Credence. 

Notably, the background of Credence's poster includes a No-Maj wanted poster that claims Newt and Jacob are wanted for bank robbery. 

Ron Perlman voices Gnarlak, a goblin gangster who runs a Harlem speakeasy (1926 is right in the middle of Prohibition, after all). We don't know that much about him yet, but his character poster gives us a look inside his establishment, complete with bottles of alcohol, a setup for a band, and wanted posters that claim Tina and Newt have violated the International Statute of Secrecy. And in the lower left corner, is that Picket, Newt's favorite Bowtruckle?

As MACUSA's Director of Magical Security, Percival Graves is one of the highest-ranking wizarding officials in New York, and he sets out to track down Newt and his case of magical creatures, concerned that Newt might break the International Statute of Secrecy. He also connects with the young Credence Barebone, showing him compassion. 

And is that...?

It is! Interestingly, Graves' poster includes a necklace with the Deathly Hallows symbol on it, suggesting that somehow, the mysterious Auror has a connection the Hallows. Is he just someone who believes in the Resurrection Stone, the Elder Wand, and the Invisibility Cloak, like Xenophilius Lovegood? (It was Lovegood who introduced Harry to the concept of the Hallows, after Harry spotted him wearing a similar necklace at Bill and Fleur's wedding.)

Or does this necklace suggest something more sinister? The notorious dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald was gaining power in Europe in 1926, and he co-opted the Hallows symbol as his own personal mark. In the last Fantastic Beasts trailer, we saw Seraphina Picquery speculating about whether Grindelwald could be turning his eye to America. Could Graves be in league with the dark wizard overseas?