Expelliarmus.
The pinnacle of HBO has insisted that the brand new “Harry Potter” sequence is not going to be “secretly infused” with writer J. Ok. Rowling’s controversial anti-transgender views.
Casey Bloys, who serves as CEO of the community large, mentioned the upcoming present, Rowling, and her divisive rhetoric throughout an episode of Matthew Belloni’s “The Town” podcast.
“The decision to be in business with J.K. Rowling is not new for us. We’ve been in business for 25 years,” Bloys defined on Wednesday, April 30. “We already have a show on HBO from her called ‘C.B. Strike’ that we do with the BBC.”
Like “C.B. Strike,” the upcoming “Harry Potter” adaptation on HBO will see Rowling, 59, function an govt producer. Nonetheless, Bloys insisted that Rowling’s position as an govt producer doesn’t imply that her “personal political views” will likely be “secretly infused” into the present.
“‘Harry Potter’ is not being secretly infused with anything,” he stated. “I think it’s pretty clear that those are her personal political views. She’s entitled to them.”
“And if you want to debate her,” the HBO exec added, “you can go on Twitter.”
Bloys mentioned Rowling and the controversy surrounding her outspoken views shortly after first asserting the brand new “Harry Potter” sequence in April 2023.
On the time, he stated that the matter was 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,” he continued, per Selection. “Obviously, the Harry Potter story is incredibly affirmative and positive and about love and self-acceptance. That’s our priority – what’s on screen.”
Bloys’ newest remarks come after greater than 2,000 actors signed an open letter pledging assist for the trans group in response to the Supreme Courtroom of the UK’s ruling that the phrases “woman” and “sex” refer solely to a organic lady and organic intercourse.
A number of of the actors who signed the pledge, together with “Fantastic Beasts” star Eddie Redmayne and Severus Snape actor Paapa Essiedu, have labored or will likely be engaged on initiatives linked to “Harry Potter.”
“We the undersigned film and television professionals stand in solidarity with the trans, nonbinary and intersex communities who have been impacted by the Supreme Court ruling on April 16,” they wrote.
“Film and television are powerful tools for empathy and education, and we believe passionately in the ability of the screen to change hearts and minds,” the actors continued. “This is our opportunity to be on the right side of history.”
In the meantime, Rowling confronted backlash for celebrating the Supreme Courtroom’s shocking ruling.
“Think I might be having a cigar later,” she tweeted after the ruling was handed down.
“I love it when a plan comes together,” Rowling added in a second tweet on the time.
John Lithgow, who will star as Albus Dumbledore within the new “Harry Potter” sequence, has additionally been dragged into the controversy surrounding Rowling’s views.
Throughout an interview with the Occasions of London on April 27, Lithgow revealed that he has already acquired vital backlash for becoming a member of the challenge.
“I thought, ‘Why is this a factor at all?’ I wonder how J.K. Rowling has absorbed it,” the “Conclave” actor, 79, stated. “I suppose at a certain point I’ll meet her, and I’m curious to talk to her.”
