Credit: Inside the MagicNick Frost, currently best known for starring opposite Simon Pegg in films such as Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World’s End, will soon be filling the giant boots of Hogwarts groundskeeper Rubeus Hagrid in the upcoming Harry Potter television series on HBO.
However, when Frost was cast earlier this year alongside Paapa Essiedu (Black Mirror) will as Snape, Janet McTeer (Tumbleweeds) as McGonagall, Luke Thallon (Tom Stoppard’s Leopoldstadt) as Quirrell, Paul Whitehouse (Harry & Paul) as Filch, and John Lithgow (Dexter) as Dumbledore, he was forced to disable his Instagram comments when he became the target of trans rights activists who criticized the actor for associating himself with Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, whose divisive views on gender identity are widely documented.
But now, Frost has now said that he does not agree with Rowling’s views.
The British actor is now gearing up to start filming Harry Potter, which goes into production this summer, but in an interview with The Observer (via Deadline), when asked about the backlash and whether his views align with Rowling’s, he said, “She’s allowed her opinion and I’m allowed mine, they just don’t align in any way, shape or form.”
When asked whether he thinks the controversy will cast a dark mark over the new series, he added, “But maybe it shouldn’t blow over? We shouldn’t just hope it will go away, because it makes it easier. Maybe we should educate ourselves.”
This comes after Frost’s Harry Potter co-star Paapa Essiedu signed an open letter condemning the recent U.K. Supreme Court ruling on biological sex.
When Rowling was later asked whether Essiedu would be fired as a result, she took to X (Twitter) to clear the air, saying, “I don’t have the power to sack an actor from the series and I wouldn’t exercise it if I did. I don’t believe in taking away people’s jobs or livelihoods because they hold legally protected beliefs that differ from mine.”
Related: HBO’s ‘Harry Potter’: First Look at New Hermione Star in Action, Fans React
Harry Potter — The Cast and Creatives So Far
In addition to all the above actors, it has also been confirmed that Dominic McLaughlin, Alastair Stout, and Arabella Stanton will play Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, respectively, in the upcoming television series, which will span seven seasons.
Francesca Gardiner (Succession, His Dark Materials) is the showrunner and an executive producer while Mark Mylod (Game of Thrones, The Last of Us) will executive-produce and direct multiple episodes. J.K. Rowling is also an executive producer, along with Neil Blair, and Ruth Kenley-Letts of Brontë Film and TV, and David Heyman of Heyday Films.
Click here to find out everything there is to know about the new Harry Potter series.
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