Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is a whirlwind of twists and turns loaded with jaw-dropping moments at every turn. It’s time to get your Revelio charms ready…
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The biggest revelation was that Credence Barebone is actually a Dumbledore. But is he? Grindelwald drops this revelation on us and seems to have proof when he reveals the Phoenix that Credence had been caring for. The movie explains that a Phoenix will appear to any member of the Dumbledore bloodline.
This seemingly wraps up the fact that the true family tree Credence Barebone belongs in is the Dumbledores.
I disagree with this set-up in The Crimes of Grindelwald for a number of reasons. The first reason is the most obvious. There’s never been mention of Albus Dumbledore having a third sibling. He has a brother named Aberforth and a deceased sister Ariana. I don’t think that Credence is a Dumbledore, although this is what the villain says.
Grindelwald is obsessed with the idea of “for the greater good” and he is willing to lie and manipulate whoever he needs to in order to see out his vision. From the very beginning, Grindelwald has only used Credence. He disregarded the young boy as merely a squib in the first film, thinking the obscurus was actually in the little girl. He was surprised to find out that it was actually Credence who was making the Obscurus.
It is also hard for Newt to believe that Credence survived so long with an Obscurus when all others die by the age of 10. What if the Obscurus inside of Credence isn’t actually his at all? Grindelwald was seeking the Obscurus, not the person it resided in. It is very obvious that Ariana Dumbledore was an Obscurus. I think that Credences’ Obscurus is actually Ariana’s Obscurus, rather than his own.
Moving past the fact that it would be difficult to explain how the Obscurus of Ariana managed to survive and bond with Credence, Grindelwald’s revelation would make more sense if this was the case. This would explain why Grindelwald never gave Credence any relevance.
It would also reveal that Grindelwald was not actually speaking to Credence, but to Ariana’s Obscurus, when he mentions “your brother” in reference to Albus. He also says that a Phoenix will appear to any Dumbledore. This was not to infer that Credence was a Dumbledore, but rather his Obscurus is. This plays perfectly with the manipulative characterization of Grindelwald.
Credence is a big part of Grindelwald’s vision because the one person in the way of the villain’s rise to the top of the world is Albus Dumbledore. This is why Grindelwald mentions earlier in the film that Credence is the only being that can defeat Albus Dumbledore.
If Credence is actually bonded with Ariana’s Obscurus then Grindelwald has a powerful weapon in his grasp. He knows Albus would never fight his sister. This theory is confusing and impossible to prove at this point with the information that is available but I think it is an interesting theory to entertain.
