Good news, Harry Potter fans – there’s more magic to add to your reading list this week!
J.K. Rowling’s iconic series has been deeply embedded in pop culture since the 1990s, with millions of copies sold and eight movie adaptations, plus a spinoff series, following its success.
Centered on Harry Potter, a young orphan wizard destined to confront the dark Lord Voldemort, the series gained acclaim for addressing complex themes in a way that resonated with younger audiences. However, the once-united fanbase has splintered recently due to the growing controversy around its creator.
The drama began in 2019 when Rowling expressed her support for Maya Forstater, a British researcher dismissed from her job after tweeting that transgender women cannot alter their biological sex. By using the hashtag #IStandWithMaya, many interpreted Rowling’s statement as a denial of transgender identities.
Any doubt over whether Rowling is against the transgender community has been dispelled in the years since. In 2020, Rowling reacted to an article referring to “people who menstruate” by posting a series of sarcastic comments on X (formerly Twitter).
She quipped, “I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?” This response led critics to accuse her of reducing womanhood to biology and disregarding transgender and non-binary people.
Following this, Rowling published an extensive blog post to defend her stance, where she argued that erasing biological sex could negatively affect women’s rights. Her comments sparked widespread criticism from fans, LGBTQ+ groups, and cast members from the Harry Potter films.
Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter), Emma Watson (Hermione Granger), and Eddie Redmayne (Newt Scamander) were among those who publicly disagreed with Rowling, voicing their support for transgender rights, which Rowling later criticized.
Since then, Rowling’s focus on gender identity has intensified, with many of her posts on X now addressing the issue. Even Elon Musk suggested she change her tone and post something more positive, which is an achievement in itself.
Earlier this summer, Algerian Olympian boxer Imane Khelif named Rowling and Musk in a cyberbullying lawsuit that centered around online critics (Rowling included) who accused Khelif – who was born female, with no published medical evidence of having XY chromosomes or elevated levels of testosterone – of being male due to the fact that she was previously disqualified from the 2023 world championship after failing an unspecified gender eligibility test.
Despite the ongoing controversy, several new Harry Potter projects are in development. HBO is producing a seven-season (one per book) TV reboot, which will feature an entirely new cast in the iconic roles of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and other beloved characters like Severus Snape and Draco Malfoy.
Additionally, Audible is preparing its own version of the Harry Potter series, with a full-cast audiobook adaptation involving hundreds of voice actors.
This week, a book was also published under the Harry Potter banner. While this doesn’t continue the adventures of Harry and friends, it does include more detail and backstories for several elements of the Harry Potter universe. “From the Wizarding Archive” is an eBook and audiobook that combines 80 articles and anecdotes, such as “backstories on big characters and additional context on the stories.”
These were previously published in 2016 as “Pottermore Presents,” a series of three eBooks. With the Pottermore brand now discontinued (the website was rebranded as WizardingWorld.com in 2019), fans the repackaged version of the stories was released on August 29, complete with a new foreword penned by actress Evanna Lynch, who played Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter films.
Fans can check out a five-minute sample of the book here before purchasing the book, which retails for $11.99 on Amazon. Check out the summary below:
If you’ve ever wondered why Squibs are never offered a place at Hogwarts, what happened when Vernon Dursley first met James Potter, or how Dumbledore and McGonagall formed their lifelong friendship, From the Wizarding Archive should go straight to the top of your wish list. Containing 80 articles written by J.K. Rowling for the original Pottermore website and available for the first time in audio, exclusively from Audible, Harry Potter fans everywhere are in for a treat.
Lynch has previously drawn controversy in her own right for vocalizing her support of Rowling.
Back in 2020, Lynch deleted her Twitter after releasing a statement on Rowling’s views on gender identity. The actor said, “It’s irresponsible to discuss such a delicate topic” as transgender rights on the social media platform, adding, “I wish [Rowling] wouldn’t” and that “that said, as a friend and admirer of Jo I can’t forget what a generous and loving person she is.”
In 2023, however, Lynch defended Rowling – with whom she previously exchanged letters at the age of 11 during her recovery from anorexia, well before being cast in Harry Potter – in an interview with The Telegraph.
“I was very naive when I was dragged into that conversation,” Lynch said. “I didn’t even know there were two sides. I had a view of, like, good and bad. I do have compassion for both sides of the argument. I know what it was like to be a teenager who hated my body so much I wanted to crawl out of my skin, so I have great compassion for trans people and I don’t want to add to their pain.”
Lynch went on to say, “I do also think it’s important that JK Rowling has been amplifying the voices of de-transitioners.
I had this impulse to go, ‘Let’s all just stop talking about it,’ and I think probably I’m a bit braver now about having uncomfortable conversations … [Rowling’s] character has always been to advocate for the most vulnerable members of society. The problem is that there’s a disagreement over who’s the most vulnerable. I do wish people would just give her more grace and listen to her.”
Where do you stand on the controversy around JK Rowling?