“I can understand that her vision generates anger because of what she says about women. But she is not some kind of obscene and extreme right-wing fascist. She is a woman saying: ‘I am a woman, I feel like a woman and I want to be able to say that I am a woman.’ And I can understand what she means,” Fiennes pointed to her interpretation of Rowling’s statement.
The controversy surrounding the billionaire author started in June 2020, when the British scoffed on Twitter at an op-ed that used the reference “menstruating people” and did not use the term “women.” This tweet represented a wave of criticism that caused Rowling to defend herself against her and even write a detailed essay stating her opinion.
Fiennes, has already intervened in favor of the writer on other occasions. “JK Rowling has written some incredible books about empowerment, about young people finding themselves… It’s all about becoming a better, stronger, morally better human being,” the actor noted.
For their part, other members of the cast of the film saga such as Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson or Eddie Redmayne (fantastic animals) clearly positioned themselves in favor of the trans population, in response to the controversy. Various groups in defense of LGBTQ+ rights and human rights around the world condemned JK Rowling’s statements and described them as clearly discriminatory against trans people.
With the premiere of Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts, which premiered in early 2022, the absence of the original author of the story was clear. At the time, when asked about this project, Rowling declared: “I thought it had more to do with the movies than with the books, that’s what the anniversary was about”, justifying her absence.
Rowling’s statements seem to have somewhat overshadowed the course of her work. They have run versions that the premiere of Fantastic Beasts 3 had been affected by JK Rowling, since its premiere was close to the entire virtual brawl.
The fate of the saga remains open, so far it has not been defined if there will be more tapes that continue to explore this magical universe.