Daniel Radcliffe has issued a rare response to the controversy surrounding Harry Potter author JK Rowling. In an interview with the American magazine The Atlantic, Radcliffe says that he is “very sad about it”. Rowling has been controversial since her comments about trans people in 2020. “I look at the person I met, the times we saw each other, the books she wrote and the world she created. All of that seems so deeply empathetic to me .”
The actor also acknowledges that he owes a lot to Rowling. “Of course Harry Potter wouldn’t exist without her,” Radcliffe said. According to him, his life would be completely different without the writer. Yet he does not think that he should attach everything he believes to a person for that reason. Radcliffe says he has had no direct contact with Rowling since the controversy.
According to Rowling, the trans rights movement aims to undermine women as a protected group, writes The Atlantic. Regarding an op-ed that used the term “people who menstruate,” the writer said, “I’m sure there’s a word for those people. Give me a hand.” By this she meant the word ‘woman’.
Later, the writer also said that she would rather end up in jail than use preferred pronouns for trans people. Radcliffe already expressed support for the trans community at the time. “I will continue to support the rights of all LGBTQ people and will have no further comment,” Radcliffe told The Atlantic.
