With HBO‘s “Harry Potter” series nearing a production start date, J.K. Rowling has taken to X to give the series her full-blown support. She confirmed that she’s “worked closely with the extremely talented writers” on the show, although she will not be getting any writing credits herself like she has on the “Fantastic Beasts” movies.
“I read the first two episodes of the forthcoming HBO ‘Harry Potter’ series and they are SO, SO, SO GOOD!” Rowling also posted.
HBO made it clear from the beginning that Rowling would be involved in some capacity with bringing her iconic literary series back to life on screen, this time as a television series where each book is set to cover one season of TV. Network CEO Casey Bloys previously told reporters that Rowling was “very, very involved in the process” of selecting showrunner Francesca Gardiner and director Mark Mylod to lead the charge on the “Harry Potter” TV series.
Rowling has courted controversy since 2020 for regularly sharing beliefs on social media that many believe are transphobic. The author also uses platforms like X to regularly troll her critics and take aim at public figures (such as slamming John Oliver’s comments on trans athletes). Both HBO and the new “Harry Potter” cast have received backlash for getting into business with Rowling due to her anti-trans posts.
Bloys has said that Rowling’s anti-trans statements “haven’t affected the casting or hiring of writers or productions staff” for the show. He appeared on “The Town” podcast in May and stressed to “Harry Potter” fans that the network’s upcoming series will not be “infused” with Rowling’s controversial views on the transgender community.
“The decision to be in business with J.K. Rowling is not new for us. We’ve been in business for 25 years,” Bloys said. “We already have a show on HBO from her called ‘C.B. Strike’ that we do with the BBC. It’s pretty clear that those are her personal, political views. She’s entitled to them. ‘Harry Potter’ is not secretly being infused with anything. And if you want to debate her, you can go on Twitter.”
Dominic McLaughlin, Arabella Stanton and Alastair Stout are headlining HBO’s “Harry Potter” series as Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. The supporting cast will feature John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape and Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, among others.
Rowling made headlines in May for saying she wouldn’t fire Essiedu after he signed an open letter condemning the U.K. Supreme Court for ruling that transgender women are not legally considered women and transgender men are not legally considered men.
“I don’t have the power to sack an actor from the series and I wouldn’t exercise it if I did,” Rowling wrote on X while sharing an article about Essiedu. “I don’t believe in taking away people’s jobs or livelihoods because they hold legally protected beliefs that differ from mine.”
The “Harry Potter” series is expected to go into production later this year for a premiere sometime in 2026.