'Fantastic Beasts 3' has lowest opening weekend of any Wizarding World film

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore has had the lowest UK box office opening of any Wizarding World film.

The third installment of the Fantastic Beasts series which is a spin-off prequel to Harry Potter, opened in the UK to £5.9m.

That figure is a third of what the first film Fantastic Beast and Where To Find Them made on its opening weekend in 2016 — £15.3m — and less than half of what the 2018 sequel The Crimes of Grindelwald made — £12.3m.

Read more: Fantastic Beasts 3 trailer teases a return to Hogwarts

While the numbers are far below what is generally expected from the Wizarding World franchise, which has grossed around £9bn from films alone, it is still the third highest opening of 2022 behind The Batman and Sing 2.

The Secrets of Dumbledore has also received mixed reviews from the critics. While some praised it as an improvement over its predecessors, there was still criticism aimed at the overall plotting and how the series has switched focus from Eddie Redmayne's Newt Scamander to Albus Dumbledore.

There was praise for Mads Mikkelsen who has replaced Johnny Depp in the role of Grindelwald after the Alice in Wonderland star lost his libel suit against The Sun for calling him a 'wife beater'.

While Depp's performance in The Crimes of Grindelwald was heavily criticised, particularly for his white-haired appearance, Mikkelsen's portrayal of the villain was roundly acclaimed with many suggesting that he should have had the role from the start.

Watch a clip from Fantastic Beasts 3

Grindelwald was also played by Colin Farrell in the first installment.

The Secrets of Dumbledore also saw Katherine Waterston largely absent from the film. While the female lead in the first two films, she only has two scenes in The Secrets of Dumbledore and is largely written out of the plot.

The Secrets of Dumbledore also saw the return of Aberforth Dumbledore who was originally played by Ciaran Hinds in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2.

Here he is played by Richard Coyle who is best known for his role in The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.

Watch below: Eddie Redmayne compares Fantastic Beasts to Ocean's movies