Wands ready! The Wizarding World is the ever-expanding magical universe inspired by the vision of author J.K. Rowling. First established in the Harry Potter books and then brought to the screen in Warner Bros.’ Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts films, this world now extends to a stage play, theme parks, games, interactive experiences, products and exhibitions. To hold all of this together, Pentagram has designed the brand identity for the Wizarding World, the umbrella brand that bridges the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts franchises.
The Wizarding World identity takes the form of a book whose fanned-open “pages” are actually nine wands belonging to beloved characters in the franchises. The idea of the book captures the universe’s literary origins, while the wand is the most important tool for wizardkind. The design of the logo also suggests a magical symbol, radiating light. All the wands point inward towards the book, inviting fans to discover more of the magic and adventure of the Wizarding World.
The wands are owned by legendary wizards from the two franchises, in an order that is symbolic, reflecting the evolution of the films beginning with Harry Potter, followed by Fantastic Beasts. From left to right, the wands belong to: Voldemort, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Harry Potter, Albus Dumbledore (the Elder Wand, the most powerful wand in the Wizarding World, is at the center), Newt Scamander, Tina Goldstein, Queenie Goldstein, and young Gellert Grindelwald (the wand he possessed before claiming the Elder Wand).
Along with the wands, the logo brings together the graphic language from each franchise and elements emblematic of the characters, including Harry Potter’s iconic lightning bolt and beastly attributes of magical creatures. The Pentagram team designed a new custom typeface called Harry Beast, incorporating details from the Harry Potter logo and the Fantastic Beasts logo (previously designed by Pentagram), that is used in cross-franchise promotional materials. Pentagram collaborated with type designer Jeremy Mickel to create the font. The Wizarding World identity appears in a luminous gold that complements the silver of the Harry Potter logo and the pewter of Fantastic Beasts.
The Pentagram team developed the concept for a brand animation of the book opening. The logo is used as a trusted mark of quality and authenticity in the ever-widening shared universe, appearing as an imprint on books and an endorser on films and games.
In addition to the identities for the Fantastic Beasts films, Pentagram designed the identity for “Harry Potter: Wizards Unite,” a new mobile adventure from Niantic and WB Games, coming in 2019.
