As Johnny Depp has planned to step into “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world by playing Gellert Grindelwald in in the “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” sequel.
Lets take a look at what the character actually is and what is its importance to the plot.
“For the Greater Good.”
Gellert Grindelwald (c. 1882 – March, 1998) was considered one of the most dangerous Dark Wizards of all time. Many believed him to be the greatest and most powerful Dark Wizard of history, so much so that even Britain, one of the few European countries Grindelwald had avoided, considered him one of the most dangerous wizards in history, second only to Lord Voldemort, their own resident Dark Lord.
He was schooled at Durmstrang Institute until his expulsion, as a result of his twisted, dark experiments upon fellow students. Later he fostered a friendship with Albus Dumbledore while living in Godric’s Hollow for a summer with his great-aunt, Bathilda Bagshot.
The two made plans to find the Deathly Hallows and wield their new-found power as Masters of Death, leading a Wizarding revolution with the aim of ending the International Statute of Secrecy and creating a benevolent global order led by wise and powerful witches and wizards that dominated Muggles. Their partnership fell apart after the two were involved in a three-way duel with Aberforth Dumbledore that resulted in Ariana Dumbledore’s death.
Grindelwald left Britain and soon stole the Elder Wand from Gregorovitch, proceeding alone with the revolution he and Dumbledore had planned.
He established a power base in continental Europe at the fortress Nurmengard. Grindelwald was a complex figure, highly idealistic but marred by sociopathic tendencies and his links with the Dark Arts, a revolutionary operating outside the law.
He was not a wanton killer or torturer, but he and his followers (in a single-minded and unpopular quest; one’s allies must often be unsavoury characters) committed numerous crimes, including several known murders and eventually genocide.
In 1945, at the height of his power, Dumbledore confronted and defeated him in a legendary duel.
Grindelwald was subsequently imprisoned in his own fortress for decades, and was slain there by Voldemort in 1998 when he refused to give up information on the Elder Wand.
