Trouser Suits and Cat Mannerisms: Poppy Corby-Tuech on Vinda Rosier from “Fantastic Beasts”

Poppy Corby-Tuech has graced our screens in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore as Vinda Rosier, a devoted follower of Gellert Grindelwald. In a recent interview with 1883 Magazine, she discussed her intriguingly silent character.

Poppy Corby-Tuech poses for “1883 Magazine.” (Credit: 1883 Magazine)

The elegant villainess Vinda Rosier has a surname many Potter fans will recognize. Evan Rosier is a pure-blood wizard who becomes one of Voldemort’s Death Eaters after leaving Hogwarts, so it’s likely that Vinda is one of Evan’s ancestors.

There are links to the Harry Potter world, but these are entirely new characters. There’s scope for them to be connected to a world that we’re familiar with, but you don’t always know. The way the films are made is quite secretive. Even when you’re casting, you don’t necessarily get a lot of information. And so that stuff transpires as time goes on, sometimes many months later.

Corby-Tuech knows “Vinda is on the wrong side, but she believes she’s on the right side of things,” and this leaves audiences intrigued to discover why she chose Grindelwald’s side. Corby-Tuech described Vinda as “fanatical,” “a believer,” and “hardcore,” and her devotion to Grindelwald is “almost bigger than a religion to her.”

Vinda Rosier presents a gift to Grindelwald – perhaps starting her family’s long line of affiliation with the dark side. (Credit: Entertainment Weekly)

Secrets of Dumbledore brings audiences into the 1930s, introducing us to life at Hogwarts and the worldwide wizarding community.

You do get this sense of the real life of the 1930s, which is so beautiful. It’s one of my favorite eras in terms of decor and interiors and fashion. It’s visually stunning, and to get to do that and also have the fantasy wizarding world where we’ve all got wands, we’re all doing magic, is great. Because it grounds it in something quite real. Sadly, I didn’t get to go to Hogwarts.

Working with Colleen Atwood (costume designer for the Fantastic Beasts films) was one of Corby-Tuech’s “favorite things,” describing her as a “complete genius when it comes to knowing everything technical about fashion and how to fit and how to tailor and how to make things look absolutely beautiful on you.”

Atwood even let Corby-Tuech have a say on Rosier’s outfit.

I’d seen Dark Shadows, which is a Tim Burton film, and Eva Green looks so good in that movie. And she’s got this blonde peroxide wig, and there’s a scene in there where she’s in a pinstriped suit. And I was like, ‘That’s so great.’ And I said to Colleen, ‘It’d be really fun to wear a trouser suit.’ And she was like, ‘Yes, it would.’ And then she made me one!

It was really fun and it was super, super beautiful. It features in a scene that got a lot of air time for me, so I’m really glad we saw that suit. At that period in the ‘30s, a lot of women wore gowns and dresses, and it’s fun with a character like Rosier, who is a henchwoman, an evil sidekick, but also dresses amazingly. To be able to give her something quite masculine and tailored and modern was amazing.

“Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore”: Vinda Rosier character poster

Corby-Tuech’s outfit allows her to be physically transformed into Rosier, and her shoes in particular had a big part to play in this.

Especially because I have been given some really high heels for this role, and sometimes you don’t even see them. Sometimes they’re completely covered up by a coat or a pair of trousers, but it gives you a certain stride and a body shape.

Rosier doesn’t have much dialogue; she is very much “on the outside of things,” meaning her movements and body language are important in crafting the character’s identity, and Rosier’s mannerisms were based on an animal that is close to Hermione’s heart.

I sort of based her mannerisms on cats and that feeling of watching silently and waiting for the moment to pounce.

We think Corby-Tuech does an excellent job portraying the silent yet intriguing Rosier. What are your thoughts on the character, and what else would you love to discover about her?