We've seen two Fantastic Beasts movies, premiering in 2016 and 2018, with a third now in the works. Johnny Depp was originally cast to reprise his role as Gellert Grindelwald, but in November of last year, he was asked to resign. 

Soon after, Mads Mikkelsen was confirmed to be stepping in. We can only imagine how hard it is to take on a character that's already been solidified by another actor, but Mikkelsen is up for the challenge.

He spoke with Collider about joining the established franchise, and when asked about replacing another actor, he said, "Nobody’s interested in me going in there and trying to copy anything, that would be creative suicide immediately, especially when it’s been done before and masterfully."

He elaborates on his plans, going on to say, "So, everybody’s expecting us to find a different path. Having said that, we need a bridge between what he (Depp) did and what I’m gonna do, so those bridges you have to find together, whether it’s a certain look, whether it’s a certain attitude in certain situations, but you have to make it your own. Anything else would be plainly just creatively stupid."

It sounds like a good plan to us.

Here's a clip of Mikkelsen talking to ET Canada about getting the role and being on-set, with everyone being friendly:

The Harry Potter spinoff movie Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them premiered in 2016, with Eddie Redmayne taking on the lead role as wizard Newt Scamander. We saw the sequel in 2018, entitled Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. The third film, which is yet untitled, is set to premiere in 2022.

Mikkelsen is also signed on to star in the forthcoming India Jones movie and The Billionaire Spy, both in pre-production.

Do you think swapping in a new actor will go smoothly?