Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore
Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: April 15, 2022 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
47
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 49 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
28
Negative:
8
Watch Now
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
The Observer (UK)Wendy IdeApr 12, 2022
In this third outing, there’s a crucial crackle of chemistry between Mikkelsen and Jude Law’s younger Dumbledore. Read full review
60
We Got This CoveredScott CampbellApr 11, 2022
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore gently levitates rather than soars, hums quietly under its breath when it should sing, and mildly entertains and amuses when it should have fans gripping the edge of their seats as thing hurtle to a breakneck climax. Read full review
60
NMEJames McMahonApr 8, 2022
With such conflict already swirling around the films, is there any hope that new sequel The Secrets Of Dumbledore might cast a spell over audiences? It would help if the plot wasn’t so convoluted. Read full review
60
EmpireBen TravisApr 5, 2022
The Secrets Of Dumbledore doesn’t quite cast a Potter-like spell — but with solid action and moments of genuine heart, it delivers a little light in the Wizarding World’s darkest hour. Read full review
60
Total FilmKate StablesApr 5, 2022
Despite the well-honed wizarding credentials of Yates and co-scripters Steve Kloves and Rowling, the series still can’t seem to settle on a hero. Let’s hope that the prospective next two helpings can unravel whether it’s Newt’s beast-fuelled journey or Dumbledore’s quest with which we’re hitching a ride. Read full review
60
VarietyPeter DebrugeApr 5, 2022
While “The Secrets of Dumbledore” doesn’t exactly embrace simplicity, the screenplay — no longer credited to Rowling alone, but co-written by stalwart “Harry Potter” adapter Steve Kloves — feels far more focused. Happily, the execution proves that much easier to follow. Read full review
60
Time OutCaroline McGinnApr 5, 2022
Even at its weakest, the Potterverse – with its magic, mayhem, and world class ability to create imaginary worlds of epic sweep and a million tiny details – retains its transportive power. Go see this one at the cinema where the big screen and sound will wrap you in a warm, magical duvet of delight. Read full review
60
SlashfilmEthan AndertonApr 5, 2022
"The Secrets of Dumbledore" has the most competent story yet, even if it's missing some crucial details to properly flesh out new elements of the wizarding world. Read full review
60
The GuardianPeter BradshawApr 5, 2022
It’s good-natured entertainment, though there is still something weightless and formless about the narrative. Read full review
58
Original-CinJim SlotekApr 13, 2022
If cute was the selling point of this spin-off series, it’s practically out of stock in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, a movie that has traded in its charm (and, for the most part, its fantastic beasts) for an extended Nazi metaphor. Read full review
55
ABC NewsPeter TraversApr 15, 2022
Enchantment still beckons in the third of J.K. Rowling’s planned five film prequel to Harry Potter, but this flagging franchise—beset with controversies among its creative team—slogs when it most needs to soar. Read full review
50
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliApr 15, 2022
There’s nothing in this third Fantastic Beasts installment that will grow the audience. In fact, the plodding pacing offers little to excite anyone outside the dwindling core fandom. Read full review
50
CNNBrian LowryApr 15, 2022
Like "The Crimes of Grindelwald," "Secrets of Dumbledore" is handsomely done but ultimately too much of a dumble-snore. And somehow, its appealing pieces, old and new, again add up to a less-than-magical movie. Read full review
50
RogerEbert.comChristy LemireApr 14, 2022
These “Fantastic Beasts” movies are just not good. They’re extremely OK, but never truly inspiring or transporting. Read full review
50
Rolling StoneDavid FearApr 13, 2022
A moviegoer has to be a scholar in the now-convoluted cosmology that powers these Potterverse expansion-pack prequels or abandon all hope of understanding a fraction of what’s happening — and even a lot of die-hard Harryheads may find their hippocampus getting seriously taxed while trying to catch up. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleMelanie HauptApr 13, 2022
The lazy writing is what makes this film such a frustrating experience. With a little more craft, the film could be as fantastic as the title. Maybe the next two films (gah) will be more successful. Read full review
50
The Associated PressJake CoyleApr 13, 2022
The Secrets of Dumbledore, lacking in much magic, is a bit of a bore. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubTomris LafflyApr 5, 2022
The most bewildering thing about The Secrets Of Dumbledore is how superfluous each of its ideas feel in relationship to one another. There are countless globe-trotting international characters, worlds-within-worlds, and constantly competing historical, political, and mythological references, but they all fizzle because their ill-considered stakes never seem fully realized. Read full review
50
Screen DailyTim GriersonApr 5, 2022
Impeccably crafted but only intermittently gripping, the third instalment in the Fantastic Beasts franchise has the scope and sweep of an epic while suffering from some of the same weaknesses as the first two chapters. Read full review
50
Screen RantRachel LaBonteApr 5, 2022
The Secrets of Dumbledore holds positives and negatives alike, and that makes for an entertaining, but slightly unsatisfying viewing experience. There is magic to be found, though, and perhaps that is all that matters. Read full review
50
IndieWireKate ErblandApr 5, 2022
The series’ third outing, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, falls into precisely the same traps as its predecessor, offering up an unwieldy, mostly unsettling mash-up of adult themes and childish whimsy, made still more inscrutable by too many subplots, too many characters, and a tone that veers wildly off-course at every possible turn. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineDan RubinsApr 5, 2022
With this film, nuance seems to have disapparated from the wizarding world altogether. Read full review
45
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzApr 5, 2022
It is all extraordinarily interminable, even if Yates and company had the good sense to swap out Johnny Depp for Mikkelsen this time around. Read full review
44
TheWrapWilliam BibbianiApr 5, 2022
While many of the subplots of “Secrets” fall flat or go nowhere (usually both), there are globetrotting sequences of political intrigue that sometimes make Yates’ latest foray play out like an exciting, fantastical espionage thriller. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterLovia GyarkyeApr 5, 2022
The long-awaited third installment of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World sub-franchise is less clogged with distracting detail than its immediate predecessor, but even a more refined plot can’t save the two-hour-plus film from feeling like an endurance test. Read full review
40
The TelegraphRobbie CollinApr 5, 2022
So many sequences here feel like free-floating trailer fodder: surplus to plot requirements, but too expensive to cut. Read full review
40
The Irish TimesDonald ClarkeApr 5, 2022
Through it all the technical work remains of the highest quality. It seems a shame that Stuart Craig and Neil Lamont’s lavish production design and Colleen Atwood’s gorgeous costumes – both leaning into unreal golden-era Hollywood – are wasted on such an emotionally unengaging slog. Read full review
40
IGNSiddhant AdlakhaApr 5, 2022
It looks drab and feels like it was made by people who want to leave its magical premise behind, even though the series refuses to have anything resembling grown-up politics or perspectives. Read full review
More From This Movie

47 Critic Reviews

5.9 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 77 Project Hail Mary
2 75 Send Help
3 73 Hoppers
4 72 The Sheep Detectives
5 68 Crime 101
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL