While fans of the Fantastic Beasts franchise may know Eddie Redmayne best for his performance as the bumbling and shy –yet capable — Magizoologist Newt Scamander, the actor has an impressive and diverse body of work. From playing Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything to his most recent performance as a real-life serial killer in Netflix’s new movie release, The Good Nurse, there doesn’t seem to be a role Eddie Redmayne isn’t ready to tackle. However, his children, especially his daughter, would humorously prefer he sticks to the Wizarding World.
In a recent appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, the actor said his children (who are four and six) are confused about what he does for a living. The Danish Girl actor even joked that his kids thought he worked at a sweets shop. While speaking with Colbert, Redmayne recounted a funny anecdote about his children visiting him on the set of his new Netflix movie. His children believed he was set to play the titular Good Nurse, though they later found out that was not the case. Redmayne explained how seeing the trailer for the film affected them:
They caught a glimpse of the trailer for the film [The Good Nurse], which, again, is horrific parenting, I don’t know why I showed it to them. And they realized, quite promptly, that I am not the good nurse. I’m the bad nurse. And my daughter asked me if maybe I could go back to being a wizard.
I’m sure more than a few Fantastic Beasts fans share the same sentiments as Eddie Redmayne’s daughter. It’s hard enough for fans to see an actor who portrays a beloved character, like Newt, taking on the role of a cold-blooded killer. I can’t imagine it’s easier for a young child to see their parent in such a dark role. Still, you can’t help but chuckle over his little girl’s sheer honesty.
Though the three Harry Potter prequel films have been a bit of a mixed bag, each consecutive movie declining at the box office since the franchise kicked off in 2016, many believe the latest installment — Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore — to be the best of the bunch. While the series was initially intended to go on for five installments, the fourth and fifth movies have yet to be greenlit. Due to the low box office performance, the Wizarding World follow-ups might not happen for quite some time.
Recently Eddie Redmayne shared his thoughts about whether the series will continue and expressed his love for playing Newt. He admitted that he doesn’t know the answer to whether or not the franchise will move forward. As the actor explained, the future of the Beasts movies is in the hands of series creator J. K. Rowling, director David Yates, and Warner Bros.
There are still many questions surrounding the Fantastic Beasts movies that fans would like to see answered. It would be a shame for the planned movies to go unproduced with narrative threads hanging in the air. Perhaps Redmayne’s adorable Late Night anecdote will fire up fans and get the ball rolling on the next installment so that the Newt actor can return to his Wizarding World role. If not for the fans, for his children’s sake.
Unlike the actor’s children, if you do want to see Eddie Redmayne play real-life nurse and serial killer Charles Cullen, The Good Nurse is now available to stream with a Netflix subscription. Those looking for more magical fare can check out the Fantastic Beasts trilogy using an HBO Max subscription.