14
Credit: ABC / Warner BrosJK Rowling has lost a lot since joining the “gender critical” movement, known for its transphobic views. She’s been removed from museums, seen the Fantastic Beasts series go from a smash hit to dead in the water, and denounced by once close Harry Potter stars like Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Tom Felton, and more.
In just five years since she “accidentally” liked a transphobic tweet in 2018, Rowling has gone full TERF (trans-exclusionary radical feminist). But the once beloved Wizarding World writer proclaims she is unbothered by fans turning against her. Last year, she quipped that large royalty checks made “the pain go away” quickly.
A report from Collider suggests that those checks are significantly smaller these days. Brontë Film and TV, a production company of which Rowling and her literary agent Neil Blair are majority shareholders, saw a 74% profit drop.
The company blamed the sudden revenue drop from £6.9M to £1.8M ($2.2M) on the pandemic. After all, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child couldn’t perform for months during COVID-19 shutdowns.
But, as Collider points out, the stage play was one of the first to return to Broadway in New York. It was closed for an entire year during the worst of the pandemic, and a stint of closures in 2022 shouldn’t have significantly impacted Brontë Film and TV’s profits. In fact, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child saw more revenue loss in 2022 than throughout the worst of the COVID-19 closures.
“Brontë’s subsidiary, Harry Potter Theatrical Productions, reported revenue of £3.5M, which was down £6.6M, or 65%, compared with 2021,” the company wrote. “Its pre-tax profit fell 84% to £1.1M.”
Fans online overwhelmingly attribute Rowling’s downfall to her transphobic activism. Anytime the author announces a new project, such as the video game Hogwarts Legacy or a book about an author murdered by trans activists, news of boycotts far outweighs its success.
“The drop between Fantastic Beasts 2 and 3 was much bigger in the UK than in the rest of the world,” said @psuedonymoustwt. “It’s hard not to think that has at least a little to do with her becoming so well known as a [transphobe] in her own backyard.”
The drop between Fantastic Beasts 2 and 3 was much bigger in the UK than in the rest of the world. It's hard not to think that has at least a little to do with her becoming so well known as a transhobe in her own backyard.
— jingleheimer schmidt (@psuedonymoustwt) August 8, 2023
“Gosh!” @RobinElise007 wrote. “Something, something, karma.”
Gosh! Something, something, karma.
— Robin Elise 🏳️⚧️ ⚢ (@RobinElise007) August 8, 2023
“Her fan base was mostly Queer people,” @FreiKyrus replied. “So. Yea. Not her brightest move. 🙄”
Her fan base was mostly Queer people. So. Yea. Not her brightest move. 🙄
— ⛦ (Ky) Kyrus Frei 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ 🎃 🦇🪄 (@FreiKyrus) August 8, 2023
Do you support JK Rowling? Share your thoughts with Inside the Magic in the comments.