Alfonso Cuaron in Talks to Direct 'Harry Potter' Spinoff 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'

In the minds of many Harry Potter fans, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban remains the best movie of the eight-part series. Thanks to Alfonso Cuaron's direction, the third Harry Potter movie moved the franchise from a few harmless kids' movies to a world that was dangerous and existed beyond the safe confines of Hogwarts.

With the ball rolling on its Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them trilogy, Warner Bros. has been looking for a director for the first Harry Potter spinoff. On Monday, former Deadline editor Nikke Finke tweeted that the studio may have found its man in Cuaron himself.

I hear Alfonso Cuaron ('Gravity', 'HP/Azkaban') deep in talks to direct JK Rowling's Harry Potter spinoff 'Fantastic Beasts'. Perfect pick.
— Nikki Finke (@NikkiFinke) May 19, 2014

The first Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them movie is scheduled to open on Nov. 18, 2016, so Warner Bros. still has some time to lock down a director. Cuaron would be an excellent choice. I'm honestly kind of surprised that after directing the acclaimed Gravity Cuaron would go back to a studio picture like a Harry Potter spinoff. Maybe Warner Bros. has promised him a huge amount of freedom to helm Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.