The Wizarding World is a global sensation, thanks to J.K. Rowling's novels, stage plays, theme parks, and the Harry Potter movies (which are streaming with a HBO Max subscription). Over the past few years there's been some drama surrounding the property, thanks to Rowling's controversial views on transgender women. This led to some of the other people in the franchise distancing themselves from the author, and after Emma Watson spoke about the state of their relationship, now Rowling has written a long response on her thoughts.
A number of members from the Harry Potter cast has responded to her comments about trans people, particularly Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson, who put their support behind that community. Following the latter's viral interview, where she spoke about Rowling opening doors while also mentioning their political differences, the author took to X (Twitter) to share her own thoughts. Part of the response reads:
Emma and Dan in particular have both made it clear over the last few years that they think our former professional association gives them a particular right - nay, obligation - to critique me and my views in public. Years after they finished acting in Potter, they continue to assume the role of de facto spokespeople for the world I created.
Obviously the cast of Harry Potter knows the franchise well, thanks to the decade they spent bringing the eight-movie series to life. But Rowling seems to take umbrage with the actors using their voice, particularly when it comes to the world she created.
When Daniel Radcliffe spoke out about Rowling, he also addressed the queer Harry Potter fans who are having trouble separating the author with her recent comments. Indeed, some Potter fans have boycotted the franchise altogether. Later in her long tweet about the cast, Rowling continued:
When you've known people since they were ten years old it's hard to shake a certain protectiveness. Until quite recently, I hadn't managed to throw off the memory of children who needed to be gently coaxed through their dialogue in a big scary film studio. For the past few years, I've repeatedly declined invitations from journalists to comment on Emma specifically, most notably on the Witch Trials of JK Rowling. Ironically, I told the producers that I didn't want her to be hounded as the result of anything I said.
The ongoing narrative does consistently get the public's attention, with LGBTQ+ folks and their allies criticizing the author, while some fans have aggressively defended her. It's a dizzying situation, one that the writer claims she's tried to keep Watson and other actors out of. Although back in March J.K. Rowling threw shade at the actors.
In her recent post, Rowling claimed that Watson only recently changed her tune: writing:
The greatest irony here is that, had Emma not decided in her most recent interview to declare that she loves and treasures me - a change of tack I suspect she's adopted because she's noticed full-throated condemnation of me is no longer quite as fashionable as it was - I might never have been this honest.
Clearly this is a complicated situation, one that elicits strong relationships from the celebs in question and fans alike. And as the Harry Potter TV show continues filming its first season, smart money says the discourse surrounding the Wizarding World isn't going to stop anytime soon.
The Harry Potter franchise is streaming in its entirety ton HBO Max, which will also be the home of the TV adaptation. We'll just have to wait and see if the drama between Emma Watson and J.K. Rowling continues to heat up.
