Get the latest gossip

J.K. Rowling Says She Wouldn't Fire 'Harry Potter' Star for Trans Support

'Harry Potter' reboot actor Paapa Essiedu signed a pro-trans rights letter, and J.K. Rowling shared her thoughts on his continued casting

J.K. Rowling does not share the same views on trans rights as actor Paapa Essiedu, who will play Severus Snape in HBO’s Harry Potter reboot, but she said that won’t affect his employment. Essiedu was among more than 400 actors to sign an open letter following the U.K. Supreme Court’s recent ruling that a woman is defined by biological sex, not gender identity, and only those assigned female at birth can use single-sex spaces meant for women, such as bathrooms. Signatories include Golda Rosheuvel, Hannah Dodd, Ruby Stokes and Nicola Coughlan, the last of whom has openly spoken out against the Potter reboot in light of Rowling’s anti-trans rights stance.

Get the Android app