Could young Hagrid show up in a Fantastic Beasts sequel?

Writing on reddit, one fan reminded us that the films are supposed to last until 1945 (when Dumbledore and Grindelwald had a legendary duel), and pointed out that the timeline crosses over rather well with ANOTHER bit of 1940s Potter backstory involving Hogwarts student-turned groundskeeper Rubeus Hagrid (played by Robbie Coltrane in the film series).

“In 1943, the Chamber of Secrets was opened by our pal [Tom Marvolo Riddle, aka Lord Voldemort] when Dumbledore was just a Transfiguration professor,” user reedzy wrote.

“We also know that Hagrid was framed for this and the ‘beast’ thought to be released from the CoS was Aragog. All we know about Aragog's past was explained in book 2: "I come from a distant land. A traveller gave me to Hagrid when I was an egg.

“So this might be a long shot here, but since the timing overlaps a bit, could we possibly see Newt influencing a young Hagrid, introducing him to some fantastic beasts, and, ultimately, offering Hagrid Aragog's egg?”

Thinking about it, this totally makes sense – Eddie Redmayne’s animal-loving Newt would fit perfectly into a role as Hagrid’s confidante, bridging the gap between the two Potterverse series in a neat hat-tip to fans.

Equally, however, it would be amazing to see a young Voldemort open the Chamber of Secrets (after seeing some flashbacks of this in the original series), and perhaps gaining a bit of inspiration from Depp’s older dark wizard two years before the latter’s downfall.

Of course, this could all be a coincidence that some fans have spent too much time thinking about, but let’s be serious – we’re dealing with JK Rowling here, and nothing is unplanned. We’re already casting Young Hagrid in our heads.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is in cinemas now