Harry Potter: Why We Need a Marauders Spin-Off

When JK Rowling created Harry Potter, the author made one of the richest fictional universes to date. The magical world features hundreds of original characters, locations, and events which shape the wizarding world. This week, moviegoers will get a chance to explore part of the expanded Harry Potter universe when Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them hits theaters.

However, there are fans who are already looking forward to future cinematic spin-offs, and they already have one in mind. Potterheads have been petitioning for a standalone series based on the Marauders Era, and ComicBook.com is giving you five reasons why that franchise should exist.

Animangus Forms

According to Harry Potter lore, the Marauders became friends during their first years at Hogwarts. James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew all came from different walks of lives. They crafted a friendship which knew few bounds, and their dedication even led the boys to become illegal animagi to support Remus Lupin during the full moon.

Just imagine watching James Potter experience his first full-on animangus transformation. The poor wizard would probably be a bit awestruck to discover that he had turned into a stag. Seeing the gang spend their nights with Remus after he shifted into his werewolf form would be tense yet heartwarming moment. And fans definitely want to see it.

The First Order of the Phoenix

When you look at Harry Potter's timeline, the Marauders Era coincides with one of the biggest events in magical history: the first rise of Lord Voldemort. The dark wizard began earnestly recruiting Death Eaters in the early 1970s while the Marauders were still at Hogwarts - and Headmaster Dumbledore could not keep the revolution's reign from penetrating the school.

After the Marauders graduate from Hogwarts, they quickly align themselves with a secret organization known as the Order of the Phoenix. The group was recruited by Dumbledore, and they fought back against Voldemort's schemes. A spin-off could delve into this time period and give fans a better look at what all the Marauders and their comrades lost. Fans already know the Order suffered major casualties as seen with the Longbottoms, but a feature film could tangibly depict those grievous losses in real-time.

Peter Pettigrew's Past

So, most Harry Potter fans hate Peter Pettigrew, and their reasoning for doing so is totally sound. The mousy man was a member of the Marauders and a very close friend to James and Lily Potter. However, Pettigrew was seduced by Voldemort after the dark wizard preyed upon the man's greatest fears. This led Pettigrew to to sell out the couple's location to Voldemort and directly implicated him with the Potters' deaths.

While fans may hate Pettigrew, they know that Lily and James must have trusted him at once point. They had enough faith in the man to entrust the location of their home to him while they were hiding from Voldemort, so it would be interesting to see how Pettigrew got involved with the Marauders in the first place.

Lily Falls For James Potter

Harry Potter has plenty of romances, but few are as popular as Lily/James. The couple was an unlikely one as Lily came from a muggle family while James hailed from a well-known wizarding family, but the boy was determined to make Lily fall for his charms. And, after lots of trial-and-error, he succeeded.

With begrudging help from the Marauders, James was able to show Lily a side of himself that she fell in love with. At first, she hated the boy's arrogance and bullying ways when it came to her friend Severus Snape. Those feelings eventually changed to hesitance acceptance and eventual attraction as their Hogwarts years went by.

Fans know that the relationship between Lily and James is an ill-fated one; That is made quite clear in the Harry Potter series. However, their tragic end has not persuaded fans to ignore the couple's inspiring romance. If anything, it has only encouraging their interest tenfold.

Voldemort's First Rise to Power

In all of fiction, there are not many villains who can stand up to Voldemort and his insane ideology. The dark wizard was obsessed with magic and insisted muggles were an inferior race to pure-blooded covens. His vindictive yet charming personality pushed many prominent wizarding families to join his cause, and Voldemort's war was well underway by the time the Marauders became adults.

If you thought Voldemort's reign was bad during the Harry Potter series, then you would be aghast to see his power the first time around. The self-proclaimed Dark Lord had wizards, witches, and all manner of magical creatures under his vengeful spell - and fans hope they'll get to see the first war play out on-screen one day.