A bit over a year ago, Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling delighted her Jewish readers when she admitted that the wizard Anthony Goldstein, Harry’s classmate, is indeed a member of the tribe.
.@benjaminroffman Anthony Goldstein, Ravenclaw, Jewish wizard.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) December 16, 2014
With anticipation for the new spin-off film, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, at a pitch following its first trailer (see above), Rowling has confirmed to fans that yet a few more Jewish characters dwell within the wizardry world: Porpentina “Tina” Goldstein, her sister Queenie, and their mother. Despite Goldstein being a common Jewish surname, it’s no coincidence that Anthony and Tina’s family share a name. As Rowling notes, Tina, Queenie and her mother are “distant” relatives of Anthony. Â
Yes (but distant). https://t.co/EtpXLRwCFf — J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) August 15, 2015
Porpentina Goldstein (played by Katherine Waterson) reportedly plays a major role in the new film, which will take place in New York circa 1926, as the protagonist Newt Scamander’s love interest. Scamander (played by Academy Award-winner Eddie Redmayne) is a British wizard who comes to the United States, where he meets Porpentina, who works with the country’s Magical Congress.
As Tablet points out, this is huge news for Jewish fans of the franchise, as the Goldstein family is officially the first Jewish wizard family in the Harry Potter universe.
As any devoted fan will tell you, it’s already known that Scamander and Porpentina Goldstein will wed, since their grandson is Harry Potter character Rolf Scamander (who marries fan favourite Luna Lovegood). Does this mean he’s also a wizard-member of the tribe? He’s at least half.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is out in November 2016.
