Disney Pays Millions For Harry Potter-Like British Fantasy Novel Series Impossible Creatures

Disney has signed a "substantial 7 figure" woody for Impossible Creatures, a best-selling British phantasy bid featuring fantastical beasts that the publishing satellite has dubbed arsenic the adjacent Harry Potter.

Written by Katherine Rundell, 2 novels successful the Impossible Creatures bid person been released truthful acold — each of which earned uncommon multi-million lb publication deals up of publication. At slightest 3 much novels successful the bid are planned.

According to Deadline, Disney secured the rights to Impossible Creatures successful a bidding warfare with Netflix and Warner Bros., the second of whom is already engaged re-adapting Harry Potter into an ambitious, decade-long HBO TV series.

Impossible Creatures writer Katherine Rundell. Photo by Simone Padovani/Getty Images

Impossible Creatures follows the adventures of a young lad who discovers a magical satellite aft travelling successful the Scottish Highlands. Instead of Hogwarts, however, young Christopher finds the satellite of Gilmouria Archipelago, and a miss named Mal. Together, they enslaved implicit a shared tendency to look aft the Archipegalo's creatures, who are struggling to past arsenic the world's magic seeps away.

"When I work Impossible Creatures, I knew it belonged present astatine Disney," said Disney brag Bob Iger, successful a connection celebrating the deal. "I was instantly drawn into the vibrant satellite Katherine imagined and the possibilities of what we could bash unneurotic with this story. Written by Katherine herself, these movies are successful the champion of hands with our Walt Disney Studios team, and I can’t hold to spot this communicative brought to the screen."

"I’m perfectly thrilled to beryllium linking arms with Disney,” Rundell said. "It’s a privilege to beryllium penning these screenplays and processing these archetypal movies successful the franchise unneurotic with Charles [Collier, Rundell's originative partner], my squad astatine Impossible Films, and with the exceptional squad astatine Disney. I'm particularly grateful to Bob Iger, whose enthusiasm aft speechmaking the publication helped acceptable this collaboration successful motion."

Last month, Legendary Pictures reportedly paid much than $3 cardinal to get the movie rights to upcoming acheronian phantasy publication Alchemised — a caller which began beingness arsenic Harry Potter fanfiction, centered connected a concealed romanticist narration betwixt Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger.

Photo by Simone Padovani/Getty Images.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social