Chris Columbus has separated "the artist from the art" when it comes to Harry Potter as he doesn't agree with author J.K. Rowling's views on the trans community.
The 66-year-old filmmaker was responsible for bringing Rowling's wizarding world to life on the big screen when he adapted her first two books, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, into films.
In recent years, Rowling has used her profile to speak out at what she perceives to be an erosion of women's rights to appease the trans community which has led to the stars of the original film series such as Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson - who played Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger - to speak out in support of trans people and distance themselves from Rowling.
In June 2020, Radcliffe posted an essay on The Trevor Project website after feeling “compelled” to speak out given he is the face of the film franchise.
Referring to JK by her first name Joanne, he said: “Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo or I.”
Harry Potter is being rebooted for TV with a new HBO Max series, on which Rowling has worked with the writing team to ensure the scripts are faithful to her books.
Columbus doesn't think that anyone should shun the upcoming series because of Rowling's political beliefs, and insists the stories can still be enjoyed and exist regardless of the author's stance on biological sex.
Speaking to Variety, he said: "I like to sometimes separate the artist from the art, I think that’s important to do.
"It’s unfortunate, what’s happened. I certainly don’t agree with what she’s talking about. But it’s just sad, it’s very sad.”
Columbus has no interest in returning to the Harry Potter franchise insisting his version has been seen.
But the Home Alone director is interested in seeing what HBO does with the pupils of Hogwarts because there were different parts of the books that he couldn't include in his films because he didn't have the luxury of an episodic TV format.
He said: "The great thing about it is that with the first and second and third book, we wanted to do it all. We wanted to bring all of that onto the screen, and we didn’t have the opportunity."
Recalling a moment from the book in which Harry and Hermione take potions and believe they might be poisoned, he added: "We could never get that incredible scene into the film, and I’m sure it’ll be in the HBO series. So for me, it’s an opportunity to bring all those scenes to life."
The HBO Harry Potter series started filming for Season One in July, and the show is expected to be available to watch in 2027.
