Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald Is The Least Scary Harry Potter Movie

As a longtime Potter fanatic and gaming content writer, I have strong views on the creepiest and most chilling moments across the books, films, and spinoffs. While the series has no shortage of frights, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald stands out as the least scary entry according to both critics and audiences.

Let‘s break down where it lands on fear factor compared to the rest.

The Horror Highs and Lows of Harry Potter

Looking at the books first, most fans agree that The Goblet of Fire and The Chamber of Secrets take the crown for scariest source material (The Prisoner of Azkaban is right up there too). The graveyard scene with Voldemort‘s rebirthing ritual? Terrifying. And nothing beats a deadly, petrifying Basilisk slithering through the Hogwarts pipes.

In the films, masterful direction from Alfonzo Cuarón makes The Prisoner of Azkaban a truly chilling experience – with a darker tone, frightening creatures like the Dementors gliding overhead, and tense sequences with Sirius Black on the loose.

Yet across mainstream critics and fans, The Half-Blood Prince is commonly chosen as the series‘ scariest movie. The Inferi attack in a gloomy sea cave, Harry cursed by Draco Malfoy, the looming threat of war and loss – Half-Blood Prince keeps you constantly on edge in the Wizarding World turned upside down.

So where does this leave Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald? Squaring up poorly, unfortunately. With the lowest Rotten Tomatoes critic score (36%) and worst fan reactions of any Potter-verse installment, the sequel was panned for messy plotting and lack of magical thrills.

Grindelwald‘s Wasted Potential for Chills

On paper, Gellert Grindelwald sounds like a fantastic creepy villain – with buildup across the original series as a terror second only to Voldemort himself. Actor Johnny Depp was certainly an off-kilter choice, and potentially inspired if kept reigned in.

Yet Depp‘s zany, distracting performance and the film‘s disorganization leave Grindelwald feeling like wasted potential. He comes across as no more threatening than a flamboyant mafia don, lacking the heinous deeds or psychological torture that define iconic Potter antagonists.

No memorable frightening moments stick out either. Fantastic Beasts 2 even abandons a dark, atmospheric feel at times in favor of garish blockbuster aesthetics. For a follower‘s perspective, I‘d place it several rungs below the scariest Potter installments in effectively delivering chills.

So there you have it, by critical consensus and this superfan‘s judgment: Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald comes out as the least effectively frightening Harry Potter film by a long shot. For a more thrilling creature-filled ride, just rewatch the original movies!