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Credit: Inside the MagicIn a surprising turn of events, HBO has addressed the extent JK Rowling and her infamous gender views are having on the upcoming Harry Potter reboot.
As all Potterheads, both past and present (and, thanks to her incessant social media usage, the vast majority of X users) are aware, JK Rowling has some pretty strong feelings about gender identity and the transgender community.
JK Rowling: A History of Transphobia
It started with Rowling liking a few transphobic tweets, an action she later said was accidental. She then raised concerns about transgender women in female-only spaces.
Since then, her comments have intensified—she has drawn comparisons between transgender people and Voldemort’s Death Eaters, condemned Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson for opposing her views, and clashed with prominent transgender activists in heated online debates.
Earlier this year, she made headlines yet again after joining the conservative mob targeting Algerian boxer and Olympic gold medallist Imane Khelif.
In the wake of her victory at the Olympics in Paris, Khelif was attacked by the likes of Rowling due to a past claim from the corrupt International Boxing Association (IBA) that she once failed a “gender test,” the specifics of which the organization wouldn’t disclose.
Despite the fact that Khelif was not born male, does not identify as intersex, and is a cisgender woman who was assigned female at birth – therefore more than qualified for women’s sports – Rowling and several other transphobic keyboard warriors made it their mission to campaign against her gold medal, with Khelif eventually naming Rowling in a cyberbullying lawsuit that’s still pending.
With all the drama around Rowling, the Harry Potter community has shifted massively. While some fans have abandoned the franchise and called for boycotts of new projects, such as last year’s video game “Hogwarts Legacy,” others have tried to find new ways to engage with the fandom without actively endorsing Rowling.
Rowling’s Impact on the ‘Harry Potter’ Reboot
This extends to the upcoming reboot heading for HBO. Originally announced for the streaming service Max, the series is expected to introduce a whole new cast as Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Rupert Grint, and co., and adapt one Harry Potter book per season over the course of a decade.
Beyond the fact that some people feel the series just does not need to exist, there have been concerns about Rowling’s active involvement with the franchise—namely, whether her stance on gender identity will impact production.
Now, HBO CEO Casey Bloys has addressed the issue. Speaking at a preview presentation at the London Hotel in West Hollywood for their 2025 programming slate, Bloys was asked about the extent of Rowling’s involvement as an executive producer and how her views have swayed its creative process.
Bloys has a track record of dodging these kinds of questions, so it was a surprise when he answered rather directly. In his words, Rowling has “been fairly involved — she was very involved in the process of selecting the writer and the director. I imagine she’ll have opinions on casting.”
He also insisted that “it hasn’t affected the casting or hiring of writers or production staff or anything, so we haven’t felt any impact from that.”
Could Warner Bros. Discovery Buy Rowling Out of the Franchise?
Last year, rumors swirled that Warner Bros. Discovery—the powerhouse behind HBO, the Harry Potter reboot, and the original film series that ended in 2011—had hoped to reunite the original cast for a ninth film.
The plan, which allegedly included adapting the stage production “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” reportedly hit a wall over the cast’s feelings about Rowling’s involvement.
According to reports, Warner Bros. allegedly explored buying Rowling out of the franchise, but she demanded a sum deemed “impossible.” Instead, the studio opted to develop a seven-part TV series that would follow each book in the Harry Potter series.
Rowling’s iron grip on the franchise’s creative direction is well-known. She served as a consultant for every detail in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios, reportedly even having all food items served at the theme park flown to Scotland for her personal approval.
Her Universal contract further grants her absolute veto power, reading, “Any objection whatsoever by the Author with regard to any submissions…is sufficient grounds for disapproval by Licensor.”
This year, industry insider Jeffrey Sneider hinted that these control issues might push Warner Bros. Discovery to buy Rowling out of the franchise eventually.
In his newsletter, The Insneider, which shares entertainment industry leaks, Sneider speculated that the recent announcement of a new Harry Potter audiobook series suggests Rowling is maximizing the franchise’s value while she can.
“Reading between the lines, this seems like Rowling squeezing every last drop from the Harry Potter orange before WBD inevitably buys her out to get her out of the way, as the original stars won’t return with her still involved,” Sneider wrote.
The audiobook series, set for release on Amazon’s Audible service in late 2025, will bring in hundreds of actors to voice characters in all seven novels and is being produced by Pottermore Publishing, which was founded by JK Rowling in 2009.
Are you excited for the Harry Potter reboot?