1 week Ago By Alistair McGeorge
John Lithgow didn’t expect the backlash he’s faced over joining Harry Potter (Picture: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)John Lithgow has insisted he was surprised by the backlash he’s faced for joining the cast of Harry Potter.The 79-year-old actor will play Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in HBO’s upcoming reboot of JK Rowling’s iconic book series, the show has been divisive with some fans threatening to boycott it over the author’s comments about the trans community. Rowling, 59, has been criticised by some people for expressing views that have been described as transphobic by the LGBTQ+ community and civil rights groups.
While a number of original Potter stars have spoken out against her views, others have defended her, and actors signing up for the revival series have come under scrutiny.In an interview with The Times, John revealed a friend had text him a link to an article titled An Open Letter to John Lithgow: Please Walk Away From Harry Potter.He also received another message from ‘a very good friend who is the mother of a trans child, and that was the canary in the coal mine’.
JK Rowling has been heavily criticised for her views (Picture: Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for Warner Bros.)John has been cast as Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter reboot (Pictures: AFP via Getty Images)Asked if he expected the backlash, he said: ‘No, absolutely not.
Of course, it was a big decision because it’s probably the last major role I’ll play.‘It’s an eight-year commitment so I was just thinking about mortality and that this is a very good winding-down role.’The former Dexter actor admitted he was ‘curious’ to speak with Rowling and find out how she’s ‘absorbed’ the heavy criticism, which has included Hollywood stars like Pedro Pascal.
Reflecting on the backlash he’s faced, John added: ‘I thought, why is this a factor at all? I wonder how J.K. Rowling has absorbed it.
I suppose at a certain point I’ll meet her and I’m curious to talk to her.’{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Metro.
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add('metro-video-player--related-videos-loaded');});John insisted his only concern about the role was his age (Picture: Amy Sussman/Getty Images)However, he insisted he hasn’t been discouraged from his decision to sign on for the Harry Potter series.He responded: ‘Oh, heavens no.’Rowling recently responded to the UK Supreme Court’s ruling that the definitions of ‘sex’ and ‘woman’ in Equality Act 2010 refer to ‘biological sex’.
The ruling by the UK’s highest court means that trans women with gender certificates can be barred from single-sex areas.Potter author Rowling has been vocal about the recent Supreme Court ruling (Picture: Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)In a post on X, she wrote: ‘It took three extraordinary, tenacious Scottish women with an army behind them to get this case heard by the Supreme Court and, in winning, they’ve protected the rights of women and girls across the UK. @ForWomenScot, I’m so proud to know you.
’However, many people have taken to social media to criticise the ruling, describing it as ‘extreme discrimination’.‘Trans rights are being stripped away under the pretence of defending women’s rights. Trans women are women.
There should be no separate law for cis and trans women,’ Sophie Molly, a Scottish trans rights campaigner, told Metro.‘To have such a thing take effect is extreme discrimination..
. We will overcome. We will never give in.
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