'Harry Potter' spinoff 'Fantastic Beasts' starts shooting in UK

Principal photography has begun in Leavesden, England, on Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Warner Bros. Pictures announced Monday.

The movie is set in the wizarding world created by J.K. Rowling in her best-selling Harry Potter books, which were adapted into the blockbuster film franchise.

David Yates, who helmed the last four Harry Potter adventures, is directing Beasts, which stars Oscar-winning actor Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander, the preeminent magizoologist.

The ensemble includes Katherine Waterston, Alison Sudol, Dan Fogler, Ezra Miller, Samantha Morton, Jenn Murray and Colin Farrell.

Rowling will make her screenwriting debut with this project, which was inspired by Scamander's Hogwarts textbook, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

The movie is set for worldwide release in 3D and IMAX on Nov. 18, 2016.