Recent buzz has surrounded not one, but two JK Rowling script publications. The first is of course the previously announced Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Now there’s also something that I’ve been hoping for for a while now, which is the physical publication of Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them.
Some have been excited about this. Others have been the obligatory pessimists.
I say that publishing FB is essential, and here’s why.
This script was actually written by JK Rowling. Not to knock Cursed Child, but this script was merely overseen by her. It was written by an accomplished playwright, though it doesn’t hold the same merit that it would if it were actually written by her, word for word.
Publishing a script by a famous author is not a new thing.
In fact, Stephen King has done this in the past with his script for Storm of the Century. It was a riveting read, and in no way did it take away from watching the film. They are both complementary, as they should be.
Every year film studios publish their scripts for awards recognition. True, many of these are not mass-market. Most are privately published and distributed for Oscar contention. But, they are still bound up for those who are not a part of the production to read.
When it was announced that there would be a massive publication operation with the release of the film, I was disheartened to see that no novelization or script publication was on the docket. Instead we got more depressing coloring books and factoid books, which I have no interest in. Give me some of JK’s words, please! Now my wish has been granted.
I commend JK Rowling for giving us her words again. They are always a delight to read, and I am thankful to read a new style from her. A script is an entirely different beast (pun intended) from novels, and it will be interesting to see how her storytelling translates to the screenplay format.
Come on, November!
Franklin Kendrick 