Daniel Radcliffe Just Called Out The Notion That He And His “Harry Potter” Costars Are “Ungrateful Brats” For Publicly Opposing J.K. Rowling’s Anti-Trans Rhetoric
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In June 2020, Harry Potter fans everywhere were left dismayed when the popular book franchise’s author, J.K. Rowling, made a series of anti-trans comments on her X account, formerly Twitter.
She started by sarcastically commenting on an article that used the inclusive term “people who menstruate,” and then doubled down on her anti-trans views in an essay published to her personal website.
In the essay, Rowling responded to being labeled a “TERF” — an acronym for trans-exclusionary radical feminists — and repeatedly shared her belief in the importance of "biological sex," or the sex people are assigned at birth.Her comments sparked immediate backlash from trans rights activists and organizations.
A few days later, Daniel Radcliffe — who shot to fame playing the titular character in the movie adaptation of Rowling’s Harry Potter book series — issued a statement through the Trevor Project, an LGBTQ+ suicide-prevention nonprofit that he has been publicly supporting since 2009.
In the statement, Daniel threw his support behind the trans community as he wrote: “I realize that certain press outlets will probably want to paint this as in-fighting between J.K. Rowling and myself, but that is really not what this is about, nor is it what’s important right now.”
“Transgender women are women,” he added. “Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo or I.”
Rowling has continued to use her social media platform to push anti-trans rhetoric since 2020. Meanwhile, Daniel’s Harry Potter costars Rupert Grint and Emma Watson have followed his lead in publicly supporting the trans community.
Just last month, Rowling referred to the actors when she responded to a tweet that said they owed her “a very public apology” for not sharing her views.
“Just waiting for Dan and Emma to give you a very public apology ... safe in the knowledge that you will forgive them …” the original tweet read, with Rowling replying: “Not safe, I'm afraid.”
“Celebs who cosied up to a movement intent on eroding women's hard-won rights and who used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors can save their apologies for traumatised detransitioners and vulnerable women reliant on single sex spaces,” she added at the time.
And now, in a new interview with the Atlantic, Daniel has reflected on his decision to publicly oppose Rowling’s views four years ago, explaining: “I’d worked with the Trevor Project for 12 years and it would have seemed like, I don’t know, immense cowardice to me to not say something.”
“I wanted to try and help people that had been negatively affected by the comments,” he added. “And to say that if those are Jo’s views, then they are not the views of everybody associated with the Potter franchise.”
Daniel also explained that through his work with the Trevor Project, he’d realized how important Harry Potter was to many members of the LGBTQ+ community — which is why it felt even more important for him to be a visible ally amid Rowling’s comments.
He said: “A lot of people found some solace in those books and films who were dealing with feeling closeted or rejected by their family or living with a secret.”
And in incredibly rare comments about his personal thoughts on Rowling, Daniel told the publication: “It makes me really sad, ultimately. Because I do look at the person that I met, the times that we met, and the books that she wrote, and the world that she created, and all of that is to me so deeply empathic.”
He also reflected on the notion that he and his costars owe their careers to Rowling, so they shouldn’t go up against her because of that.
“There’s a version of ‘Are these three kids ungrateful brats?’ that people have always wanted to write, and they were finally able to. So, good for them, I guess,” Daniel said.
“Obviously, Harry Potter would not have happened without her, so nothing in my life would have probably happened the way it does without that person," he continued. "But that doesn’t mean that you owe the things you truly believe to someone else for your entire life.”
“I will continue to support the rights of all LGBTQ people and have no further comment than that,” the star concluded.
Rowling has not publicly responded to Daniel’s comments.
Peer-support services are available at the Trans Lifeline. You can call the hotline at 1-877-565-8860.
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