Harry Potter star Emma Watson has opened up about her current perspective on J.K. Rowling, years after the pair’s rift over the author’s controversial views on trans people.
While Rowling has doubled-down on her TERF views in recent times, they first caught the attention of Watson — who played Hermione Granger in Harry Potter — in 2020, when the author shared an essay which was widely panned as transphobic.
It prompted Watson to side with the trans community in a social media post, with Rowling saying last year that she wouldn’t forgive the actress for “cheer[ing] on the transitioning of minors” — whatever that means inside a brain that’s (allegedly) been riddled by mould.
Flash-forward to now and Watson has said she holds space for her conflicting feelings about Rowling, telling Jay Shetty on a recent appearance on his podcast that she can “treasure” the author while not always agreeing with her.
“I really don’t believe that by having had that experience, and holding the love and support and views that I have, means that I can’t and don’t treasure Jo and the person that I had personal experiences with,” Watson said.
“It’s my deepest wish that I hope people who don’t agree with my opinion will love me and I hope I can keep loving people who I don’t necessarily share the same opinion with,” she added.
Later, Watson said she will “always” be open to reconnecting with Rowling because that “conversation was never made possible” back in 2020, adding that in the years since, she has been careful about weighing in on the matter given the sensitivities of the topic.
“I just don’t want to say anything that continues to weaponise a really toxic debate and conversation,” Watson said.
“It is why I don’t comment or continue to comment. Not because I don’t care about her or about the issue, but because the way that the conversation is being had feels really painful to me,” she continued.
It echoes a similar sentiment shared by Watson’s Harry Potter co-star Daniel Radcliffe, who said last year that Rowling’s views are “sad” because he holds generally positive memories of her and her books.
“I do look at the person that I met, the times that we met, and the books that she wrote, and the world that she created, and all of that is to me so deeply empathic,” Radcliffe said.
Even despite many Potter stars’ opposition, Rowling has continued her tirades on the trans community, recently celebrating the UK Supreme Court’s controversial ruling on the definition of a woman and elsewhere criticising South Australia for its use of pronouns in courtrooms.
All that being said, what’s the spell that makes a TERF be quiet?
Lead images: YouTube and X
The post Emma Watson Says She ‘Treasures’ J.K. Rowling In First Interview About Their Fall-Out appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
