Johnny Depp has posted a statement to his Instagram account announcing that he has resigned from the Fantastic Beasts films at Warner Bros. request. Depp is still in the middle of a legal battle with ex-wife Amber Heard and her allegations of abuse.

On Monday Johnny lost a libel case against the Sun newspaper. In his statement he says he will be appealing that decision to prove the allegations are untrue. His full statement may be read below.

In light of recent events, I would like to make the following short statement.

Firstly, I’d like to thank everybody who has gifted me with their support and loyalty.

I have been humbled and moved by your many messages of love and concern, particularly over the last few days.

Secondly, I wish to let you know that I have been asked to resign by Warner Bros. from my role as Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts and I have respected and agreed to that request.

Finally, I wish to say this.

The surreal judgement of the court in the U.K. will not change my fight to tell the truth and I confirm that I plan to appeal.

My resolve remains strong and I intend to prove that the allegations against me are false. My life and career will not be defined by this moment in time.

Thank you for reading

Johnny Depp

Variety is reporting that Warner Bros. has confirmed the role of Grindelwald will be recast and the third Fantastic Beasts film will be pushed back to Summer 2022.

Update: It has been revealed that th.e new release date is July 15, 2022

“Johnny Depp will depart the ‘Fantastic Beasts’ franchise. We thank Johnny for his work on the films to date,” a Warner Bros. spokesperson said. “‘Fantastic Beasts 3’ is currently in production, and the role of Gellert Grindelwald will be recast. The film will debut in theaters worldwide in the summer of 2022.”

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A post shared by Johnny Depp (@johnnydepp) on Nov 6, 2020 at 8:15am PST

In a new post on WizardingWorld.com, Warner Bros. has revealed some details on Fantastic Beasts 3. One of the biggest reveals was that the film will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This was actually confirmed a while ago but this is the “official” announcement.

Steve Kloves is listed as a co-writer along with J.K. Rowling for this third installment of the series. Previously J.K. Rowling was the only writer for the Fantastic Beasts films.

Eddie Redmayne will return as Newt Scamander, Jude Law as Albus Dumbledore and Johnny Depp as Gellert Grindelwald along with Ezra Miller (Credence/Aurelius Dumbledore), Alison Sudol (Queenie Goldstein), Dan Fogler (Jacob Kowalski) and Katherine Waterston (Tina Goldstein).

The post also shares that Jessica Williams will have a bigger role in this film. Her character, Professor Eulalie ‘Lally’ Hicks, is a teacher at Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and was featured very briefly in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.

The third installment of Fantastic Beasts will start production in Spring 2020 and will release on November 12, 2021.