“HANNIBAL” and “Doctor Strange” actor Mads Mikkelsen is in early talks to take on the role of the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald in “Fantastic Beasts 3,” replacing Johnny Depp in the role, Variety has confirmed.

After playing Grindelwald in the first two “Fantastic Beasts” movies, Depp announced Friday that Warner Bros. had asked him to “resign” from the role after Depp lost his U.K. libel trial relating to abuse allegations by ex-wife Amber Heard.

“Fantastic Beasts 3” is currently in production in the U.K.

The role of Grindelwald is very much in Mikkelsen’s wheelhouse for playing elaborately intelligent villains. As conceived by author J.K. Rowling, Grindelwald is a brilliant and ruthless dark wizard who in his youth maintained a complicated romantic relationship with the famed wizard Albus Dumbledore (played by Jude Law in the “Fantastic Beasts” films).

“Fantastic Beasts 3” is currently scheduled to open July 15, 2022.

(SD-Agencies)