• In an essay titled "Being the Broke Parent," Matt Burke wrote about how reading the "Harry Potter" books with his daughter has been an affordable way to bond with her.
• "I'm a single parent, broke as can be, and reading the Harry Potter series together has become one of the biggest sources of bonding for us," Burke wrote in a tweet sharing the essay with author J.K. Rowling.
• Rowling responded on Twitter: "The gifts you're giving your daughter are priceless and I'm truly honoured that Harry & co are playing a part. DM me your address for a set of signed Potters."
• People responded to the exchange with their own stories of how the fantasy series helped them bond with their kids. 

A 34-year-old self-described "broke" dad wrote about how he uses "Harry Potter" as an affordable way to bond with his 9-year-old daughter — and he got the attention of author J.K. Rowling herself. 

In a Medium essay titled "Being the Broke Parent," Burke wrote about how being unable to afford an internet connection led him to be more resourceful in order to keep his child occupied on rainy days. Instead of watching Netflix, he started reading the "Harry Potter" books with her.

"It pulls the two of us into this world that doesn't actually exist obviously, and got us out of this world that does exist, at least for 30 or 45 minutes," Burke told INSIDER.

Burke shared his essay in a tweet to Rowling — and she responded.

"I'm a single parent, broke as can be, and reading the Harry Potter series together has become one of the biggest sources of bonding for us," Burke wrote. "Doubt you'll come across this or read this piece, but I just wanted to say thanks for the assist."

But to his great surprise, Rowling did come across it.

Just a few hours later, she replied to his tweet: "The gifts you're giving your daughter are priceless and I'm truly honoured that Harry & co are playing a part. DM me your address for a set of signed Potters."

Burke wrote back, "Oh my, my head is about to explode. 😭You are too kind, thank you so much. I'll DM you my address ASAP."

He told INSIDER that he immediately sent Rowling his address and hadn't yet received a response Friday morning.

Burke's daughter has no idea about Rowling's tweet — and he plans to surprise her.

Bailey is completely unaware that Rowling is sending them signed books because she's away at summer camp, her father told INSIDER, but he plans on surprising her once the books arrive.

They're currently on the fourth book: "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," he said.

Reading "Harry Potter" lets Burke be "directly involved" with something his daughter loves, he wrote in his essay. The two of them take turns reading chapters out loud to each other.

"This not only allows her to get more used to reading aloud in front of someone, but it gets me directly involved in something she loves, and it gives me the chance to be extra dramatic when I read my chapters and bring myself into the characters in the book, which has proven to be a ton of fun," he wrote. 

"I get to shout and use all the funny voices I've accumulated over the years without her looking at me like I'm a total weirdo," he added. "Fun times for us both and, like I said, I wouldn't change it for the world."

Their love of "Harry Potter" is so great that they're even planning on dressing up as some of the magical characters for Halloween, Burke told INSIDER. He plans on being Harry Potter himself, Bailey will dress up as Hermione, Burke's girlfriend will Professor McGonagall, and her son will be Draco Malfoy. 

He is open with his daughter about his financial struggles and mental health.

Burke told INSIDER that he felt like he was done a disservice by his father growing up because he left the house not knowing what the real world had to offer. He was raised in an affluent, suburban neighborhood in New York, and his family avoided discussing any problems or feelings. 

"I was clueless," Burke said. So he raises his daughter in a different way.

"I'm very, very open with everything with her," Burke told INSIDER. "If I'm going through some sort of fit of depression or if I'm anxious, I'll explain it to her. Obviously she's 9 years old so I'm meeting her where she's at. I'm explaining it to her on a level that a 9-year-old would be able to understand."

If Bailey asks if they can go get milkshakes at a place where milkshakes are $12, Burke explains to her that they can't afford that, but that they can go buy a $2 container of ice cream from the grocery store and make their own milkshakes, he told INSIDER.

Burke said he hopes his openness will prepare his daughter for the real world.

"I feel my relationship with her is stronger because of it," he wrote in his essay.

Burke has been interviewing for jobs for months but hasn't had any luck.

Burke told INSIDER that he's been trying to find a job since August 2017, and despite several interviews, he hasn't been able to land one.

At times, he feels especially low when his daughter tells him about shopping trips or vacations she's been on with her mother and stepfather, who have shared custody. He wrote that hearing these things "really make me take a step back and dwell on the mistakes I've made throughout the years that have put me in these predicaments."

But while rent and other bills have left him unable to pay for fun trips and sometimes birthday presents, it also gave them chance to find other ways to keep his daughter happy and entertained without spending money, Burke wrote.

Burke and Rowling's exchange seems to have restored some people's faith in humanity.

Some shared their own stories of how "Harry Potter" helped them bond with their kids.

Perhaps Albus Dumbledore said it best: "Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic." 

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• US President Donald Trump tweeted about his writing prowess on Tuesday.
• But Trump made an error in his boast, using the word "pour" instead of "pore."
• The mistake was seized upon by the "Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling and others on Twitter, including the account of the dictionary Merriam-Webster.
• Trump deleted his original tweet, replacing it with one containing the correct use of the word "pour."

J.K. Rowling is laughing at US President Donald Trump on Twitter after he misspelled a word in a tweet boasting about his writing prowess.

Trump said: "After having written many best selling books, and somewhat priding myself on my ability to write, it should be noted that the Fake News constantly likes to pour over my tweets looking for a mistake. I capitalize certain words only for emphasis, not b/c they should be capitalized!"

Though he used the phrase "pour over," the grammatically correct version would have been "pore over." The president swiftly deleted the tweet and reposted it with the correct word in place.

Rowling, the "Harry Potter" author who has been a vehement critic of Trump, could not resist the urge to point and laugh at the mistake in a series of tweets before and after the president's correction.

While many fans praised Rowling's reaction, some were critical. Rowling replied to one Twitter user who threatened burning or discarding the person's "Harry Potter" books, saying that reading the books should make her political leanings obvious.

The official Twitter account for the dictionary Merriam-Webster also made light of Trump's error. It provided definitions for "pore over" and "pour over" and went one step further, defining "comb over"— a not-so-subtle reference to the president's signature hairstyle.

The Trump biographer Tim O'Brien, who wrote "Trump Nation," also weighed in on Trump's tweet, disputing the claim that Trump had written many best-sellers.

"President Trump didn't write any of his books,"O'Brien tweeted on Tuesday. "Ghostwriters on all of them."

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• After Donald Trump sent a Sunday morning Tweet lashing out at the New York Times, "Harry Potter" author JK Rowling replied with a take-down.
• Twitter followers responded with support for Rowling's stance, resulting in over 27,000 retweets and over 140,000 likes.
• JK Rowling has mocked the President on Twitter in the past.

Donald Trump has, on multiple occasions, taken to Twitter to lash out at the media. In the past, he has blamed "haters" for negative coverage of his presidency and deemed journalists "unpatriotic." On Sunday, Trump once again attacked the media, calling the New York Times "fake news" and their board member "disgusting."   

While plenty of Twitterers replied to the message, perhaps the most-talked-about response came from "Harry Potter" maestro JK Rowling, who hit back with a typo-riddled parody comparing Trump to a child:

Her post received 31,000 retweets and 157,000 likes with many of her fans flooding the replies section to express their support over her Expelliarmus-worthy disarming of the American president:

This instance was not the first time JK Rowling has thrown shade at the President. Even before Trump entered the office, the author called Trump "a giant orange Twitter egg."

Come January, when the President said he had "nothing to do with Russia," Rowling called out the President's Twitter style, especially mocking his use of caps to express urgency. 

When in March, Trump met with Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss the European Union, White House officials reportedly said she had to explain the "fundamentals" of EU trade to him and called the entire meeting "humiliating."

Rowling took the opportunity to post a picture of Trump and Merkel with the caption "Mommy was mean to me and I don't wanna hold her hand no more."

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• The Livraria Lello bookstore in Porto is one of the world's oldest bookstores, frequently ranked as one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world, and a top place to visit in Portugal.
• Opened in 1906, the bookstore was once a haunt of the city's literary scene, and many say it was a direct inspiration for J.K. Rowling and her Harry Potter books. Rowling lived in the city from 1991 to 1993 and was a frequent customer.
• Today, the bookstore sees 4,000 to 5,000 visitors a day, which can make the cramped bookstore feel like a tourist trap. Despite the crowds, I still enjoyed my visit.

The Livraria Lello bookstore in Porto, Portugal, is one of the world's oldest bookstores and frequently ranked as one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world.

An age-old coastal city in northwestern Portugal with cobblestone streets and a historic medieval center, Porto is one of the country's premier tourism destinations. And Livraria Lello is one of the top attractions in the city.

Opened in 1906 by the brothers José and António Lello on Rua das Carmelitas, the bookstore is a stunning architectural landmark and was once a frequent hangout for Portugal's literary scene. The neo-Gothic building features a stained-glass ceiling, gorgeous wood carvings, ladders, and rails to move the books around, and a special room to protect the bookstore's oldest and rarest books.

If all this sounds like a scene from a "Harry Potter" story, you'd be forgiven for thinking so. J.K. Rowling lived and taught English in Porto from 1991 to 1993 and was a loyal customer of Livraria Lello at the time.

Many have suggested that the bookstore's ornate neo-Gothic architecture bears a striking resemblance to depictions of both Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the central setting of the books, and the Flourish and Blotts bookshop, where characters in the books purchase their books on magic.

As a writer and someone of the age for whom Harry Potter was a formative cultural experience, I knew upon arriving in Porto that a pilgrimage to Livraria Lello was a necessity.

Here's what it was like:

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I had heard it best to head to Livraria Lello as early as possible because it gets crowded. I thought I was doing OK when I got there at 11 a.m. (it opens at 10 a.m.), but when I saw the line that stretched down several blocks, I knew I was in trouble.

To get in, you have to buy tickets for 5 euros a pop (applicable toward a book purchase) from a separate storefront. My girlfriend, Annie, went and got the tickets while I held our place in line. There were some nice brochures to browse through.

The line was scalding in the summer sun, but, thankfully, Livraria Lello employees were handing out umbrellas to shade people from the sun. It was a nice gesture when you are feeling like tourist cattle.

• Third-grade teacher Tressa Bargella decorated her classroom with setpieces inspired by J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" books and movies.
• They include an entrance that resembles Platform 3/4, a big Hogwarts banner, and a fireplace with Hogwarts admission envelopes flowing into it.
• She posted photos on Facebook and Instagram, where they went viral.
• Bargella said her decorations were a hit with her students.

View Valley Intermediate's third grade class were in for a treat.

The Pennsylvania-based public school's teacher, Tressa Bargella, decorated her classroom as an homage to the "Harry Potter" series. It's filled with intricate designs that seem like they could have come from the set of one of the movies.

Students who started this week, for example, were greeted with a brick-looking "Platform 9 3/4" sign when they entered the classroom, and a sign that would remind them of Hogwarts.

"I am COMPLETELY DRAINED but it was worth it,"Bargella wrote in a viral Facebook post with photos of her classroom. "I honestly lost track of how many hours it took me but in the end, I spend more time here than at home some days and it is now my happy place."

The classroom decorations were a hit, Bargella wrote on Instagram Tuesday.

"My first day back was awesome! I am exhausted but so happy," she wrote. "A parent messaged me to let me know her daughter had a great day... 'She loved it. She said it felt like she was there for 15 min then had to leave. She didn’t want to come home.' THIS is what makes it all worthwhile for me"

Her decorations include a fireplace, with what appears to be Hogwarts admission letters flowing into it.

There are portraits of wizarding world titans, house elf socks, an owlery mailbox, and Nagini wrapping herself around the classroom TV.

You can even pick up a "free invisibility cloak."

You might bump into Moaning Myrtle in the mirror.

And the class pet is The Monster Book of Monsters, familiar to anyone who's taken a course with professor Hagrid.

Bargella isn't the only teacher to go all-out with a "Harry Potter" theme for her classroom. At Parkside, a K-8 school in Alabama, teacher transformed the entire school to look like it was right out of one of J.K. Rowling's books.

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• A "Harry Potter" fan posited that Hermione taught Viktor how to say her name in "Goblet of Fire" so readers could also learn. 
• JK Rowling confirmed the theory on Twitter.
• Fans of the movie say her name correctly, but "Goblet of Fire" was still published a year before the first movie was released. 

When the first "Harry Potter" book was published, Hermione Granger's name didn't have a helpful pronunciation guide, which meant readers had to guess and didn't always get it right.

One fan theory guessed that Rowling inserted a helpful guide into "The Goblet of Fire" to correct readers' mistakes once and for all — and Rowling confirmed it. 

Twitter user @atulaak posted on Twitter,  "Theory: @jk_rowling included that passage on how to pronounce Hermione's name in 'Goblet of Fire' just to school all of us who were saying HER-MY-OWN like Viktor Krum."

"Theory correct," Rowling responded.

Fans who have seen the "Harry Potter" movies know how to accurately say Hermione's name, but "Goblet of Fire," the fourth book in the series, was published in 2000, a year before the first film hit screens. 

In the book, Rowling included a passage about Hermione helping Viktor learn how to say her name after he kept calling her "Hermy-own." 

"'Her – my – oh – nee,' she said, slowly and clearly," wrote Rowling about Hermione. 

Hermione's name isn't the only one commonly mispronounced.

Years ago, Rowling confirmed that the "t" at the end of Voldemort's name was supposed to be silent, but in 2015 she answered a fan and said, "I'm pretty sure I'm the only person who pronounces it that way."

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After an acclaimed stop in London, the "Harry Potter: A History of Magic" exhibit has made it to New York.

It's now open in Manhattan's New York Historical Society. And it's an essential visit for any "Harry Potter" fan. It's  also being released in conjunction with a book that features parts of the exhibit.

"A History of Magic" isn't just a collection of J.K. Rowling trivia and movie props. It situates "Harry Potter" in the tradition of global fantasy and magical literature. Curated by the British Library, it features centuries-old books, artwork, and artifacts from different countries about different magical traditions.

Here's what it's like inside.

At the entrance is a giant steamer trunk that diehard "Harry Potter" fans might recognize.

In 2005, before the release of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," Scholastic allowed 9,000 libraries to get the first author-signed copy of the book in the US. It placed the book in this massive padlocked steamer trunk and sent it on a week-long voyage to New York, where it ultimately went to a library in North Carolina. The exhibit curators brought it back to New York for the display at the exhibit entrance.

The entrance before the exhibit also features flying books.

You might miss them at first, but there are books suspended from the ceiling.

Before entering the exhibit, there's also a wall featuring the work of different book illustrators.

You can see the work of Jim Kay, Mary GrandPré, Kazu Kibuishi, and Brian Selznick, as well as interviews with them.

• Evanna Lynch opened up about how JK Rowling and the "Harry Potter" series helped her overcome an eating disorder when she was 11 or 12 years old.
• The actress shared the story on the latest episode of ABC's "Dancing With the Stars," which she is competing on.
• "The only thing that could actually take my attention apart from that was the 'Harry Potter' series," Lynch explained.
• The 27-year-old said that while she was in and out of the hospital, she became pen pals with Rowling and "her books and her kindness really made me want to live again."

Evanna Lynch is known for her role as Luna Lovegood in the "Harry Potter" films, but she had a special connection with author JK Rowling before being cast in the franchise. 

Lynch shared the heartwarming story on Monday evening's episode of ABC's "Dancing With the Stars," which she is competing on with professional dancer Keo Motsepe. 

As part of the third week of competition, the stars were challenged to choose their most memorable year and perform a dance based on it. Lynch explained that 2006 was a highlight for her, because it was the year she booked her role in "Harry Potter."

The 27-year-old said that when she was 11 or 12 years old, she was battling an eating disorder.

"Anyone who's had an eating disorder knows it completely takes over your life," Lynch said. 

The actress added: "The only thing that could actually take my attention apart from that was the 'Harry Potter' series."

In addition to being "the biggest fan" of the franchise and the quirky character Luna, Lynch said that she eventually started exchanging letters with Rowling.

"I started writing to JK Rowling and she wrote back and we became pen friends after that," Lynch said. "I was in and out of hospital and I would be getting these letters."

The actress went on to say that "her books and her kindness really made me want to live again."

In January 2006, Lynch discovered the open casting call for Luna Lovegood and landed the part. 

"I love the feeling of creating and acting more than I love the feeling of being skinny or of being perfect," she added. 

"Being in 'Harry Potter' changed my life because it proved to me that I could do something, that I had something to offer the world."

Watch Lynch discuss how "Harry Potter" helped her overcome an eating disorder in the video below. 

This isn't the first time Lynch has credited Rowling and "Harry Potter" to turning her life around.  

In 2017, the actress appeared on the British morning show "Lorraine" and said: "Luna especially inspired me because I think a lot of my problems were because I felt odd and felt weird and she made me see that that was OK and that was actually empowering me."

Previously, Lynch explained that she didn't realize that being "open" about her struggle would gain so much attention. 

"I had talked about how I had a relationship with JK Rowling, writing to her beforehand, that it meant a lot to me," she told Sunday World magazine. "People would ask: 'Why did she write to you?' And it was because I was sick, and I was asking for advice, and telling her how much her books had helped me, and that was what touched her."

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• Johnny Depp will reprise his role as Grindelwald in the upcoming "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald."
• Many were upset the role wasn't recast after domestic abuse allegations against the actor by ex-wife Amber Heard.
• In a new interview for the movie with Entertainment Weekly, the actor denies those allegations.
• "I was falsely accused, which I why I’m suing the Sun newspaper," said Depp.
• He also claims "Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling has "seen the evidence" and knows he was falsely accused.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Johnny Depp continues to deny any domestic violence allegations against him.

"The fact remains I was falsely accused, which I why I’m suing the Sun newspaper for defamation for repeating false accusations," Depp says of ex-wife Amber Heard's allegations of domestic abuse.

"J.K. [Rowling] has seen the evidence and therefore knows I was falsely accused, and that’s why she has publicly supported me," he continued. "She doesn’t take things lightly. She would not stand up if she didn’t know the truth."

Amber Heard filed a restraining order against Johnny Depp in 2016 after filing for divorce

Heard filed a domestic-restraining order against Depp in May 2016, less than a week after filing for divorce from the "Fantastic Beasts" actor.

The actress presented a photo of herself with a bruised eye in court.

In August 2016, she dismissed the case with prejudice (meaning she cannot re-file it). In a statement, Heard said she would donate proceeds from her divorce to an unspecified charity. 

Depp has denied allegations of domestic violence in the past

Depp also denied allegations of domestic violence in a cover story for British GQ's November issue.

"To harm someone you love? As a kind of bully? No, it didn't, it couldn't even sound like me," he told the magazine. "So, initially, I just kept my mouth shut, you know? I knew it was going to stick on me and it would get weirder."

In response to a video which appeared to capture the actor throwing a wine bottle at Heard, Depp claimed it was an old one made to look recent which showed his reaction after losing "hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars."

"Twenty-five feet away from her, how the f--- am I going to hit her? Which, by the way, is the last thing I would've done. I might look stupid, but I ain't f---ing stupid," he said.

Heard's lawyer called the GQ interview "outrageous"and said Depp's "statements are entirely untrue."

Fans are upset that Depp is still in "Fantastic Beasts" because of domestic violence allegations, but J.K. Rowling says she supports his casting

When the first photo of Depp in the "Fantastic Beasts" sequel, "The Crimes of Grindelwald," was revealed, many fans were upset Depp was still in the movie, largely due to the domestic violence allegations.

Rowling responded to Depp's casting in the movie last December, saying she was happy to have him play Grindelwald.

"Based on our understanding of the circumstances, the filmmakers and I are not only comfortable sticking with our original casting, but genuinely happy to have Johnny playing a major character in the movies," Rowling said in a statement.

In her statement, the author said the stories about Depp "deeply concerned" her and that she did consider recasting. Ultimately, she and director David Yates decided to keep Depp in the movie. 

Yates also defended the actor in an interview with EW in December 2017, saying it's "a dead issue."

"Honestly there's an issue at the moment where there's a lot of people being accused of things, they're being accused by multiple victims, and it's compelling and frightening," Yates said. "With Johnny, it seems to me there was one person who took a pop at him and claimed something."

Representatives for Heard, Rowling, and Warner Bros. didn't immediately respond to INSIDER's request for comment.

"Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" is in theaters Friday, November 16, 2018.

If you are a victim of sexual assault, you can visit RAINN or call its hotline at 1-800-656-4673 to receive confidential support from a trained staff member.

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• J.K. Rowling is suing her former assistant and accusing her of stealing more than $30,000 to pay for shopping sprees and gifts.
• According to the lawsuit, the unauthorized payments include $4,500 for cosmetics, $2,000 for candles, and $1,600 for cats.
• The "Fantastic Beasts" creator is also accusing her former assistant of taking valuable "Harry Potter" memorabilia.
• Amanda Donaldson, the former assistant, has denied the claims.

"Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling is suing her former assistant, Amanda Donaldson, and accusing her of swindling away more than $30,000 for personal shopping sprees.

Donaldson worked for Rowling as an assistant between 2014 and 2017. During that time, she had access to a credit card that was supposed to be used for Rowling's business and personal expenses.

But, between personal spending on the business card and stolen "Harry Potter" merchandise, Rowling is accusing Donaldson of taking £23,696, or $31,134, according to a copy of the lawsuit viewed by the BBC.

According to the lawsuit, Donaldson spent $2,000 at coffee shops, $4,500 at the cosmetics store Molton Brown, $2,800 at the paper shop Paper Tiger, and $2,000 at the luxury candle chain Jo Malone. (Rowling herself is a fan of the candle brand.)

Rowling also says in the lawsuit that Donaldson stole nearly $1,600 to pay for two cats.

The lawsuit accuses Donaldson of pilfering "Harry Potter" memorabilia as well, saying she stole a motorized Hogwarts Express train and a wand collection worth $3,000, as well as a rare "Tales of Beedle the Bard" set.

Read more: How J.K. Rowling went from struggling single mom to the world's most successful author

Rowling fired Donaldson in 2017 after her husband, Neil Murray, discovered discrepancies in her monthly spending statements. But it wasn't until now that she initiated a lawsuit.

"I can confirm J.K. Rowling has taken legal action against her former personal assistant, Amanda Donaldson, following her dismissal for gross misconduct involving a substantial breach of trust,"a Rowling spokesperson told the BBC. "As the case is not yet concluded, we are not able to comment further, and there won't be any comment from J.K. Rowling."

Donaldson denied the accusations, according to the BBC, saying Rowling has "not suffered any loss and is not entitled to damages."

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• Mary GrandPré is famous for designing the American "Harry Potter" books and for inventing the iconic lightning bolt-styled logo.
• She did it all without ever talking to J.K. Rowling, she told INSIDER.
• The first time she met or spoke to Rowling was in 2007, when the author visited the United States to promote "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."
• Rowling communicated through Scholastic's creative director, but she seldom asked for any changes.

To a generation of "Harry Potter" fans, Mary GrandPré is a celebrity.

She's famous for illustrating the American editions of J.K. Rowling's book. She designed the covers for all seven of the main books in the series, made the chapter illustrations, and invented the famous lightning bolt-styled logo that's still used today. Her images were the first images people had for what Harry Potter looked like, years before Daniel Radcliffe was on the scene.

GrandPré did all that with almost no input from Rowling herself. She told INSIDER she didn't even meet or speak to the "Harry Potter" creator until after all the books were published in 2007. During the years she worked on the books, she communicated through Scholastic Creative Director David Saylor. The author and illustrator only met when Rowling toured the United States to promote "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."

"Most of my communication was with David, because he's the art director," GrandPré said. "But I did meet J.K. in Chicago for dinner, when she was on tour with Scholastic people. I got to sit by her at the dinner table, and she was really appreciative of the work and said 'I love what you're doing.' So that was really great."

INSIDER spoke with GrandPré in October, following an on-stage event at the New York Historical Society between GrandPré, Saylor, and Brian Selznick, who illustrated the 20th anniversary American edition of the books. The New York Historical Society is currently running a sprawling "History of Magic" exhibit, which situates the world of "Harry Potter" in a larger history of fantasy in world cultures.

Read more:Here's what it's like inside the new 'Harry Potter' exhibit about the real-life history of magic.

The exhibit includes many of the original illustrations GrandPré made. During the process, she said, Rowling seldom asked for changes.

"I never knew when they were talking to her and what they said. I really just heard from David what had to be changed or anything. Usually there weren't many changes at all," GrandPré told INSIDER. "She was always pretty agreeable to everything."

Her work was unaffected by the movies themselves, many of which came out while she was working on the books. GrandPré said she simply didn't watch them until she finished the books.

And unlike the illustrations made for Bloomsbury, the series's British publisher, GrandPré's made illustrations for each chapter for every book. She also invented the famed "Harry Potter" logo, where the letters seem to be formed from lightning bolts — a typographical motif that's since been used for the movies and virtually every piece of marketing for the series.

GrandPré didn't expect her artwork and images to become the phenomenon. She drew the "Harry Potter" logo, for example, almost on a whim. She didn't know it would become one of the most identifiable and recognizable fonts for one of the world's biggest franchises.

But when Saylor saw those electric letters on the page, he knew it was perfect.

"They pretty much just went with it," GrandPré said. "And that was it."

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Warning: There are minor spoilers ahead for "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald."

The "Harry Potter" fandom is famously devoted. It only makes sense that J.K. Rowling, ever a loyal servant to the readers who "have stuck with Harry until the very end," would team up with the "Fantastic Beasts" crew to saturate the new series with callbacks to the original.

On top of some cornerstone characters making a return — one in a younger body, one in an entirely different form altogether— "Crimes of Grindelwald" has multiple sneaky references to Harry's adventures. Here are 11 you may have missed.

The Circus Arcanus has a Kappa in captivity; Remus Lupin teaches his students about that very creature.

The Kappa, which Newt Scamander describes as a Japanese water demon, first appears in "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban." Professor Lupin teaches his third-year students about the magical creature in Defense Against the Dark Arts.

"From Red Caps they moved on to Kappas, creepy water-dwellers that looked like scaly monkeys, with webbed hands itching to strangle unwitting waders in their ponds," the book reads.

Lupin and Albus Dumbledore had one identical lesson plan.

Dumbledore was a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher before becoming Headmaster of Hogwarts. In a flashback, we see him teaching a class of young students — including Newt and Leta Lestrange — how to fend off a Boggart.

Lupin recreates this lesson decades later in "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban." Even the wardrobes containing the Boggarts bear strikingly similarities.

As an adult, Leta revisits a desk that she carved hers and Newt's initials into. The desk also bears the name "Nigellus."

Phineas Nigellus Black was Sirus Black's great-great-grandfather — and, according to Sirius, the "least popular Headmaster Hogwarts ever had."

A portrait of Phineas Nigellus hangs in the headmaster's office at Hogwarts, while a second hangs in a bedroom at the Black family home. Phineas Nigellus was able to assist residents of 12 Grimmauld Place, including Harry, by passing messages to Dumbledore.

Warning: Major spoilers ahead for "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald."

Many "Harry Potter" fans pride themselves on their knowledge of J.K. Rowling's intricate, magical world — which inevitably means that any newly introduced information will be dissected and analyzed. 

"Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" has many flaws, but constantly contradicting "Harry Potter" canon is among its worst missteps.

Here are eight glaring inconsistencies that are sure to bother shrewd fans of the franchise.

Newt uses "Accio" to retrieve his Niffler, which isn't supposed to be possible.

After the premiere of the first "Fantastic Beasts" film, many fans wondered why Newt couldn't simply use the famous retrieval spell "Accio" to round up his escaped creatures.

Rowling took to her website to answer the valid question: "'Accio' only works on inanimate objects," she wrote.

Read more: 12 confounding 'Fantastic Beasts' and 'Harry Potter' questions J.K. Rowling has since explained about the Wizarding World

"While people or creatures may be indirectly moved by 'Accio-ing' objects that they are wearing or holding, this carries all kinds of risks because of the likelihood of injury to the person or beast attached to an object travelling at close to the speed of light."

This explanation makes perfect sense — but maybe Rowling forgot her own rule. Newt can specifically be heard saying "Accio Niffler" in "Crimes of Grindelwald" to summon the creature into his arms.

Apparently, making an Unbreakable Vow causes scars to form on your hand.

In one confusing subplot, newly appointed Auror Tina Goldstein is trying to uncover the identity and motives of a strange wizard, Yusuf Kama. She notices scars lining his right hand and tells Newt that the markings "suggest an Unbreakable Vow."

We know that making an Unbreakable Vow involves grasping another person's right hand while a third person (a "Bonder") uses their wand to weave a stream of fire around the handshake. But we have never seen this practice leave any kind of scarring on either party.

In "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," Narcissa Malfoy has Severus Snape make an Unbreakable Vow so he will protect her son, Draco. If the Vow were to leave suspicious scars, as Tina suggests, someone at Hogwarts — or another Death Eater — would have noticed.

The Unbreakable Vow carries severe, deadly consequences if broken, so it's hard to imagine that anybody would simply disregard Snape (a noted double agent) making a life-or-death promise to anybody.

Minvera McGonagall makes a cameo before she was born.

"Crimes of Grindelwald" brought back beloved "Harry Potter" character Minvera McGonagall for two separate scenes, but it doesn't make any sense that she's there.

She first appeared in Dumbledore's classroom. Dumbledore, who was in the middle of teaching students, told the young wizards to exit the room and follow Professor McGonagall. She also appears, played by Fiona Glascott, in a flashback to when Newt and Leta Lestrange were students at Hogwarts. 

Newt began as a first-year at Hogwarts in 1908. The film is set in 1927. McGonagall was not born until 1935.

McGonagall's birth year can be calculated from her Pottermore biography (written by Rowling herself) and from McGonagall's own words in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix." She tells Dolores Umbridge that, in 1995, she had been teaching at Hogwarts for 39 years.

If she began teaching at Hogwarts in 1956 after working at the Ministry for two years immediately after graduation, this places her graduation in 1954, her first year in 1947, and her birth in 1935.

Additionally, as we explain here, Minerva McGonagall has the surname of her Muggle father — which makes it impossible that the McGonagall in "Crimes of Grindelwald" is meant to be one of her family members.

In J.K. Rowling's growing arsenal of Wizarding World magic (including potions, spells, charms, and plenty of fantastic beasts), the Patronus charm remains a fan favorite.

It's among the most mysterious, revealing, and difficult types of magic to master — especially in its final, most powerful corporeal form, as opposed to having no shape. As Pottermore notes, "The aim is to produce a silvery-white guardian or protector, which takes the form of an animal."

22 witches and wizards in the "Harry Potter" universe are known to have mastered it. Here they all are. 

Harry Potter's Patronus is a stag, like his father.

Harry's ability to produce a powerful, corporeal Patronus at age 13 — under the guidance of his third year Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Remus Lupin — is noted throughout the series as a mark of his impressive talent.

"The majority of witches and wizards are unable to produce Patronuses and to do so is generally considered a mark of superior magical ability,"Rowling wrote on Pottermore.

The Patronus of Harry's mother, Lily Evans, took the form of a doe.

Lily is never seen casting a Patronus in the "Harry Potter" books or films, but Rowling has noted her ability to produce a corporeal doe Patronus on multiple occasions.

Severus Snape's Patronus was also a doe, which symbolized his love for Lily.

Snape's doe Patronus reveals his one true motivation throughout Harry's life: to protect the child of the woman he loved.

In "Deathly Hallows," Snape also uses his Patronus to help Harry on his quest to find Voldemort's horcruxes; a Patronus charm can be used to send messages, and Harry seems to subconsciously recognize the doe as an extension of his mother, allowing him to trust it.

According to Rowling, Snape was the only Death Eater who could conjure a Patronus charm at all.

"A Patronus is used against things that the Death Eaters generally generate, or fight alongside," she wrote in 2007. "They would not need Patronuses."

"He was careful not to use the talking Patronus means of communication with [either Death Eaters or Order of the Phoenix members]," she added. "This was not difficult, as his particular job within the Order, ie, as spy, meant that sending a Patronus to any of them might have given away his true allegiance."

• US President Donald Trump misspelt "smoking"twice in one tweet on Monday.
• "Democrats can't find a Smocking [sic] Gun tying the Trump campaign to Russia after James Comey's testimony. No Smocking [sic] Gun," he tweeted.
• People piled in to mock the president for his typo, which was reminiscent of his "covfefe" gaffe last year.
• Among those to mock Trump was one of his most vocal critics JK Rowling, who had the perfect response to the spelling error.
• "The world's in such a state, I almost feel like taking up smocking again,"she tweeted.

JK Rowling is no Donald Trump fan.

The "Harry Potter" author has made her views on the President of the United States crystal clear since before he was even elected.

Read more:JK Rowling trolled President Donald Trump by rewriting his latest Twitter rant — and people loved it

It came as no surprise, then, when the celebrated writer piled in to mock the president over his latest Twitter gaffe, wherein he misspelt "smoking"— twice.

"Democrats can't find a Smocking Gun tying the Trump campaign to Russia after James Comey's testimony. No Smocking Gun… No Collusion," Trump wrote on Twitter on Monday.

The mistake drew a number of hilarious responses: "What a pity, to see the once majestic office of the #POTUS reduced to a laughingsmock," Jonathan Penn wrote.

"A smocking gun sounds like something a well-prepared contestant would bring to Project Runway," Time Out New York theater editor Adam Feldman wrote.

Merriam-Webster dictionary waded in with a definition (as it often does in times of shared internet humor). It turns out "smocking" is a real word, but it means a type of embroidery made of many small folds sewn into place — so probably not what the president was going for.

It was Trump's old nemesis Rowling, though, who delivered the best response: "The world's in such a state, I almost feel like taking up smocking again."

Her post had received over 32,000 likes at the time of writing.

The president's grammar error drew comparisons to his infamous "covfefe" tweet last year, which set the internet into meltdown at the time.

Read more:'Covfefe': Trump lit up Twitter with one misspelled word — and then made a joke about it

Rowling commented on that mistake too, saying: "You're all laughing, but perhaps the real Twitter is the covfefe we make along the way."

If one thing seems clear, it's that Rowling won't be stopping her derision of Trump any time soon.

Join the conversation about this story »

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• JR Rowling brands Jeremy Corbyn Brexit position as "b*******" in sarcastic Twitter thread.

• The Harry Potter author and long-time critic of the Labour leader criticised "Saint Jeremy Corbyn" in a thread of 16 tweets after Corbyn said he would go ahead with Brexit if he became prime minister.

• "Saint Jeremy will achieve a miracle, and he shall bring forth a jobs-first Brexit and all the land shall rejoice.’ And she did answer, ‘Bollocks'," she said in a "festive thread."

• Corbyn is under growing pressure to take a stand against Brexit.

Author JK Rowling has mocked Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and his position on Brexit in a 16-post Twitter thread.

The world-famous author of books including the Harry Potter series mocked "Saint Jeremy Corbyn" and his "b*******" Brexit policy in a tweet thread composed in a biblical style, titled: "The visitation of the Corbynites: a festive thread."

Her latest criticism of Corbyn comes after he told the Guardian that the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union would go ahead even if Labour won a snap election and got into power before the March 29 departure date.

Referring to Labour's policy of a "jobs-first Brexit," Rowling tweeted:

"And she did answer, ‘How shall the poor fare under Brexit, which thy saint hath always in his secret heart desired, yet he hath not admitted what was in his heart, lest fewer attend his next sermon on the Glastonbury B stage.’

"And they did answer, ‘Saint Jeremy will achieve a miracle, and he shall bring forth a jobs-first Brexit and all the land shall rejoice.’ And she did answer, ‘Bollocks'."

She later described Corbyn, of who she has been a long-time critic, as "in third place after Pontus [Theresa] May."

Here is the full thread

Corbyn has been criticised by pro-EU figures including some of his own MPs for his recent interview with the Guardian and refusal to oppose Brexit more generally. 

Owen Smith, senior Labour MP and former Labour leadership candidate, tweeted: "Even if he’s right that his best chance of winning is to accept Brexit (and the evidence suggests he’s wrong), morally and politically we must resist. Brexit will entrench inequality, division, nationalism and intolerance. It’s everything we stand against."

Labour MP Wes Streeting accused his leader of "peddling a myth" that Labour could renegotiate the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement currently on the table, and added: "How would Labour’s Brexit be any better than remaining in the EU? Our members and voters are overwhelmingly pro-European. This lets them, and our country, down."

Labour's Brexit policy is a deal with the EU that includes a permanent customs union, a "single market deal," and the maintenance of strong workplace and environmental protections.

At its most recent conference in Liverpool, Labour agreed to a motion that said the party would consider backing another referendum, or "People's Vote," if an early general election isn't possible.

As Business Insider reported this month, Corbyn's office is very reluctant to campaign for another referendum as they believe it would trigger a backlash among voters it must have onside to win the next election.

SEE ALSO: Exclusive: How the People's Vote campaign is preparing for the crucial weeks ahead in the mission to stop Brexit

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• An old Pottermore article revealing the pre-18th century bathroom habits of wizards has resurfaced.
• In a tweet, the "Harry Potter" site reminded fans that Hogwarts "didn't always have bathrooms."
• "Before adopting Muggle plumbing methods in the eighteenth century, witches and wizards simply relieved themselves wherever they stood, and vanished the evidence," a tweet read.
• We have questions.
• Where does vanished excrement go? What do younger witches and wizards do? Do witches and wizards just leave their robes on? How does this work if the Chamber of Secrets was built in a bathroom centuries earlier?

Pottermore, the digital site dedicated to articles and news from "Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling, resurfaced a trivia fact about the wizarding world that most people wish they could unlearn as quickly as possible. 

"Hogwarts didn't always have bathrooms," the Pottermore tweet read. "Before adopting Muggle plumbing methods in the eighteenth century, witches and wizards simply relieved themselves wherever they stood, and vanished the evidence."

If you, like us, read this tweet shortly after it was shared on Friday (and hadn't previously encountered this old Pottermore article), then you spend the better part of your day mulling over its implications. We did the extra work for you and have outlined every question this not-so-fun fact has raised, starting with the most philosophical quandary of all.

Where does vanished excrement go?

For those familiar with the books, you'll know that Professor McGonagall is asked this general question in Rowling's seventh novel, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." The Ravenclaw common room requires its would-be entrants to correctly answer a question before they can go inside. 

"Where do Vanished objects go?" the door knocker asks McGonagall. 

"Into non-being, which is to say, everything," she replies. 

So if you vanish away the contents of a toilet (well, in the case there's no toilet but you understand the hypothetical here) does that matter just go ... into everything? Like your food? Or eyes? Or Transfiguration homework? McGonagall's answer invokes a sort of molecular science, as if you vanish an object by breaking it into teeny minuscule pieces and scattering them into the universe.

Applying pseudo-scientific theory to fictional magic might be silly but Pottermore has provided us with this hypothetical scenario and therefore logic has to follow. We didn't ask for this! 

What do younger witches and wizards do?

As a lot of folks on Twitter pointed out, the Vanishing spell isn't taught until fifth year. So what did the younger students do? Was there a prefect on bathroom duty in the hallways?

And how about the youngsters still at home?

Potty training seems bad enough for muggle parents with young toddlers, but to have magical kids "relieve themselves" wherever they stand and need to vanish it for them sounds like a Wizard-parents' nightmare. And again, the impracticality of this is staggering. What if they need to use the bathroom in the middle of the night? Or at school? Or while out in public? 

Do the witches and wizards just ... leave their robes on? 

In the books, Hogwarts students wear school robes at all times. The Muggle clothing like jeans and sweaters was only adopted for the movies, since black wizard robes are a rather monotonous visual. 

But we can't stop imagining teenage wizards just crouching down in the hallway and...going to the bathroom on the floor? The Pottermore tweet says "wherever they stood" but good gracious we don't want to think about people doing this while standing.

Tangentially, why wouldn't they just vanish the contents of their bowels while said contents are still inside their body?

How does this work if the Chamber of Secrets was built in a bathroom centuries earlier?

Well this answer is actually where the trivia question originated. As Pottermore tweeted, the site's original Chamber of Secrets article says the hidden room was originally accessed by trap door. The "new" Hogwarts plumbing (again, this wasn't installed in the eighteenth century, long after outhouses were invented) "threatened" the entrance but another Slytherin wizard sorted it out.

Here's that section in the Pottermore article:

There is clear evidence that the Chamber was opened more than once between the death of Slytherin and the entrance of Tom Riddle in the twentieth century. When first created, the Chamber was accessed through a concealed trapdoor and a series of magical tunnels.

However, when Hogwarts’ plumbing became more elaborate in the eighteenth century (this was a rare instance of wizards copying Muggles, because hitherto they simply relieved themselves wherever they stood, and vanished the evidence), the entrance to the Chamber was threatened, being located on the site of a proposed bathroom.

The presence in school at the time of a student called Corvinus Gaunt – direct descendant of Slytherin, and antecedent of Tom Riddle – explains how the simple trapdoor was secretly protected, so that those who knew how could still access the entrance to the Chamber even after newfangled plumbing had been placed on top of it.

Why did it take so long for Hogwarts to get on board with a private place for people to relieve themselves?

"During the 11th-century castle-building boom, chamber pots were supplemented with toilets that were, for the first time, actually integrated into the architecture," a Smithsonian article on the history of toilets says.

If you're a "Game of Thrones" fan, the article helpfully points out that the "bathroom" Tywin Lannister is in during the fourth season finale is a perfect example of this architecture. Surely the Hogwarts professors would have been able to retro-fit the castle with one of these?

What about muggle-borns? What did they do when they got to Hogwarts?

Even before the 18th century plumbing, muggle-born witches and wizards would have grown up with an alternative way of going to the bathroom. One reply to the Pottermore tweets shows a group of "Harry Potter" fans posturing this very good point. 

Going from whatever method of bathroom you had to the ol' "relieve yourself in the hallway" gambit must have been tricky.

Can we please delete this Pottermore fact and go back to not knowing this?

In the decade since Rowling's last published "Harry Potter" book there have been many, many revelations about the wizarding world that fans wish had been left unsaid. Sometimes these facts have been sad but innocuous, like Hagrid being unable to ever produce a Patronus. But others, like Rowling's reveal that Dumbledore is gay (only to disappoint fans by withholding meaningful representation of his sexuality) are more serious.

This is clearly an example of the former. Innocuous? Sure. But resulting in a lot of eyebrow-raising among fans? Definitely. If only we all had time-turners and could zoom back to the past when we didn't know this, much like the time Moaning Myrtle once zoomed into the Great Lake with the contents of a toilet.

Join the conversation about this story »

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• Success is often preceded by major failure.
• That's according to Jean Case, CEO of the Case Foundation and chairman of the National Geographic Society.
• Failure can teach you valuable lessons that shape your future work; failure can also let you know if you're following the wrong career path.

Failure can seem like an ugly word and is often cast as the opposite of success. But the experience of failure can be transformative in ways that success is not.

If you examine the life of anyone who has achieved something extraordinary, chances are you'll find a story of failure somewhere along the way. While not all failures have a happy ending, most happy endings have a failure story. So, rather than viewing failure as an embarrassment, or shameful, or something to be endured, acknowledging failure and making it matter can actually make your life better.

Here's why:

Failure teaches valuable lessons

I've always been intrigued by the question, "In the face of failure, would you try again?" Underlying this question is the idea that failure is not an end point, but part of a process. If we let our failures teach us, we can actually view them as beneficial. When I speak on college campuses, I go out of my way to talk about my own "failure résumé," recounting what didn't go so right on my career journey, and what lessons I was able to apply down the line that made me more effective in my work.

One of my favorite stories about learning from failure involves IBM's founder, Thomas Watson, who once said, "If you want to succeed, double your failure rate." After the Great Depression, when Watson was trying to restore his business, he built up inventories to secure a million dollar government contract.

But his salesman failed to get the contract, and he went to Watson's office to hand in his resignation. Watson handed back the resignation letter and said, "Why would I accept this when I have just invested one million dollars in your education?"

Failure inspires creativity

The late Steve Jobs once spoke about the aftermath of his greatest failure — getting fired from Apple, the company he'd founded. "I didn't see it then," he admitted, "but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me.

The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life." This insight, shared after Jobs returned to lead Apple, upends typical ideas about success and failure. What if failure was the key to success?

Astro Teller, who heads X, Google's invention laboratory, has actually built failure into the process of discovery there. His teams spend much of their time finding out what doesn't work. He explains, "Teams kill their ideas as soon as the evidence is on the table because they're rewarded for it. They get applause from their peers." Teller is describing a process that produces creativity because the teams are always in search of a better way. He's proud of his designation as "the father of modern failure."

Failure puts you in touch with your true self

Sometimes we fail because we're following the wrong path, and that might have been the case for a young Oprah Winfrey, who suffered the greatest humiliation of her career when she was fired from her anchor position on the local news in Baltimore. It was a very public failure and hard to recover from. She still remembers feeling humiliated and devastated.

But then the station moved her to a struggling talk show called People Are Talking, and Oprah learned that she had a gift she hadn't known about. In the talk format, her personality and warmth shone through. Today Oprah is one of the most powerful business executives in the world, and she says she got that way by being true to herself. "Failure is just life trying to move us in another direction," she has said.

Read more: The life and career of Oprah Winfrey, who was nominated for an Oscar and lives in a $52 million estate nicknamed 'The Promised Land'

Failure strengthens your resolve

Michael Jordan has said, "I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed." Although a typical view holds that failure leads to despair and low self-esteem, Jordan and others see it as an opportunity to test their skills and resolve. It's a great lesson for all of us, and I think it is an especially meaningful one to teach our children. We want them to learn resilience — how to fall and get up again, knowing that's how they'll thrive.

JK Rowling, the wildly successful author of the Harry Potter series, was poor and struggling when she wrote her first book. She could have papered her walls with the rejection letters she received from editors. But she kept going until she received the one letter that was finally a yes. How did she stay motivated?

"I had nothing to lose," she said, "and sometimes that makes you brave enough to try."

Failure increases the joy of victory

Like most Washington, DC, residents, I was elated when the Washington Capitals won the World Cup in 2018, the first time in history the cup came to our city. Ted Leonsis, who had owned the team since 1999, had never let repeated failures cause him to lose focus. He just concentrated on continuing to build an elite team.

He understood that he was in it for the long haul. And when his team finally won, he celebrated, saying, "It is much, much sweeter to go through all the pain and suffering to get to the top of the mountain. That's the way life is. That's the way great businesses get built. It is never easy."

Like many people, I too detest failure. But the truth is that anyone who has made a big bet has been willing to accept the risk of failure, and be undaunted when it comes. So why not ask yourself if failure, or the fear of failure, is getting in your way. And if you experience failure on your own fearless journey, remember you are failing in the footsteps of giants - many who have come before you and have done extraordinary things. Pick up and let the lessons of the failure propel you forward.

Jean Case, the Chairman of the National Geographic Society and CEO of the Case Foundation, is a philanthropist, investor and internet and impact investing pioneer who advocates for the importance of embracing a more fearless approach to innovate and bring about transformational breakthroughs. She is the author of the new book Be Fearless: 5 Principles For A Life Of Breakthroughs And Purpose.

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• "Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald" is out on Blu-ray and DVD March 12. 
• INSIDER is debuting an exclusive behind-the-scenes video featuring how Jude Law wound up cast a younger, sexier Dumbledore with the actor himself and "Harry Potter" author, J.K. Rowling.
• In the video, Law said he was interested in the franchise after seeing the first "Fantastic Beasts."
• Rowling says she met with Law to fill him in on details about Dumbledore she never told anyone else.

Jude Law joined the cast of "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" as a swoon-worthy, younger Albus Dumbledore years before he was Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

In an exclusive video provided to INSIDER, Law recalls he was so interested in the franchise after watching the first "Fantastic Beasts" that he reached out to see what was next for the Warner Bros.' films.

"I saw the first 'Fantastic Beasts' and I think I made an inquiry after seeing it, quite quickly, thinking, 'Ah, where else is this going to go? What are the other characters?" said Law in the video that will be featured on the upcoming "Crimes of Grindelwald" home release. 

Law says he's not sure whether or not that was what got the wheels turning at Warner Bros., but it sounds like it probably helped. The actor previously starred in WB's hit "Sherlock Holmes."

"I got a call early on saying that they were looking to cast a young Dumbledore," said Law. "It was a very good day when I got the phone call saying that they wanted me to play him, and obviously my kids are thrilled." 

After he was cast, "Harry Potter" author and "Fantastic Beasts" screenwriter J.K. Rowling met up with Law to fill him in on everything there was to know about the famous wizard. 

"When I met Jude, we had this very intense meeting, just the two of us, where I basically told him everything about Dumbledore that I've ever known, but not told anyone else. Literally, never told anyone some of the things that I told Jude," said Rowling of letting Law in on some "Harry Potter" secrets. 

Rowling said it was imperative to let Law in on Dumbledore's full backstory if he was to play the character correctly. 

"I really thought it was important that from the moment we see him on screen he knows the burden that that character is carrying," Rowling added. "Without that knowledge, Jude is playing someone who appears to be playing games with people's lives, and that's not who Dumbledore is." 

In addition, Law says he wound up seeking inspiration from the previous actors who played Dumbledore, Richard Harris and Michael Gambon. It also gave him the opportunity to binge all of the previous eight "Harry Potter" movies.

"Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" is available on Blu-ray, 4K UHD, and DVD special edition March 12. It's currently available on digital. You can watch the video here and below:

Read more:

• Here are the magical creatures in "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald"
• Jude Law says he wasn't aware that Dumbledore wouldn't be 'explicitly' gay in 'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald'
• 8 glaring inconsistencies in 'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald' that will frustrate 'Harry Potter' fans
• The 21 biggest questions we have after seeing 'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald'
• 'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald' ends with an unexpected reveal that will divide the fandom — here's what to know

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• J.K. Rowling is being mocked for saying that Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald had an "incredibly intense" sexual relationship.
• She revealed the sexual dimension to their relationship in a DVD feature for "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald."
• People are mocking Rowling's habit of dropping new details about the "Harry Potter" and "Fantastic Beasts" universe outside of the book and movie series.
• Some fans are also frustrated that Rowling doesn't include the queer elements of her stories in the books and movies themselves.

J.K. Rowling is being mocked on Twitter for saying that Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald, two characters from her "Harry Potter" and "Fantastic Beasts" series, had an "incredibly intense" sexual relationship.

Rowling has said for years that Dumbledore and Grindelwald were in a gay relationship. While fans have long speculated that it was sexual, Rowling confirmed the detail in a DVD feature and Blu-Ray for "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald," released on March 12. Her comments went viral when they were unearthed by Radio Times.

"Their relationship was incredibly intense," Rowling said in the feature. "I'm less interested in the sexual side — though I believe there is a sexual dimension to this relationship — than I am in the sense of the emotions they felt for each other, which ultimately is the most fascinating thing about all human relationships."

Read more:25 things you didn't know about J.K. Rowling's 'Harry Potter' universe

The comment about Dumbledore and Grindelwald having a "sexual" relationship drew widespread mockery. Rowling has a habit of revealing new details about the "Harry Potter" universe after the final book, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," was published in the summer of 2007. Later that year, for example, she revealed in a public appearance that Dumbledore had fallen in love with Grindelwald, inspiring more than a decade of sexually explicit fanfiction.

Rowling often drops new information about the "Harry Potter" universe in her tweets, her Pottermore site, and her follow-up works that sometimes resembles fanfiction.

Fans also criticized Rowling for relegating the queer elements of her "Harry Potter" universe as trivia, rather than being in the canonical books and movies.

"Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald," the second of a planned five-movie "Harry Potter" prequel series, was released in November to harsh reviews. In the movie, Rowling introduced new details about Dumbledore and Grindelwald's past that were reviled by fans.

Most recently, Pottermore — a site Rowling uses to share new details about her expanding "Harry Potter" universe — was widely mocked when it tweeted out an old detail about how wizards and witches relieved themselves and vanished the excrement before using plumbing.

• Read more:
• J.K. Rowling keeps expanding the 'Harry Potter' universe — and she’s only making it better
• 8 glaring inconsistencies in 'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald' that will frustrate 'Harry Potter' fans
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