JK Rowling has scathing response to planned boycott of Harry Potter TV series
JK Rowling has given a sarcasm-laden response to the planned boycott of the upcoming Harry Potter TV series.
The author’s characters are being given new life more than a decade since the acclaimed film franchise came to an end, it was revealed this month.
HBO Max confirmed in April they had ordered the first-ever TV adaption of the Harry Potter book series, which they said would be a ‘faithful adaption.’
And while some fans went wild for the news, others were less than happy, particularly amid reports the author, 57, would be brought on as executive producer of the series.
As the news broke, some fans declared they would distance themselves from the new project due to Rowling’s views and past comments on transgender people and women’s rights.
Similar calls for a boycott were made ahead of the release of the Harry Potter video game, Hogwarts Legacy, however the game went on to sell far more copies than initially predicted.
Rowling has now responded to activists and former fans who are calling for a boycott of the series, sarcastically calling it ‘dreadful news, which I feel duty bound to share.’
‘Activists in my mentions are trying to organise yet another boycott of my work, this time of the Harry Potter TV show,’ she wrote on Twitter.
‘As forewarned is forearmed, I’ve taken the precaution of laying in a large stock of champagne.’
Bosses of the new Harry Potter production have previously shut down queries about Rowling’s gender views, saying it was ‘not something we’re going to get into.’
At a Q&A and presentation announcing the series on Wednesday in the US, Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and Max content, was asked whether Rowling’s stance could affect the ability to cast actors.
Declining to comment, Casey said according to Variety: ‘No, I don’t think this is the forum. That’s a very online conversation, very nuanced and complicated and not something we’re going to get into.
‘Our priority is what’s on the screen, Obviously, the Harry Potter story is incredibly affirmative and positive and about love and self-acceptance. That’s our priority — what’s on screen.
