John Lithgow says he’ll get harrassed about his J.K. Rowling connection ’til his dying breath.
The 80-year-old actor signed up to play Dumbledore in the upcoming HBO Max “Harry Potter” reboot. He admits he nearly turned the gig down due to the constant queries about the gig.
Namely, how could you star in project created by a world-famous “transphobe?”
Does it matter that Rowling isn’t transphobic, she simply believes biological women should compete against each other in sports and have their own separate spaces?
No.
Now, Oscar-nominee Andrew Garfield is weighing in on Rowling … for no apparent reason. And he’s come up with the worst take yet. And that’s saying something given how the child stars who rose to fame based on the “Harry Potter” films have trashed Rowling.
Garfield brought up the fact that he recently watched some of those films and marveled at youthful star Daniel Radcliffe’s performance in the saga. Then, Garfield got strangely defensive.
Those Harry Potter movies are really good. I really liked them. I know we shouldn’t be putting money in the pocket of inhumane legislation right now through She Who Shall Remain Nameless, but the soul and spirit of those films … the kids are so good … and all the artisans — I’m working with a wonderful makeup artist right now, Clare [Le Vesconte] who was working in the creature workshop [on the films]. And I’m like, oh man, we can’t throw the baby out with the bathwater, there are so many beautiful artists who worked on those films.”
The saga’s villain, Voldemort, was referred to repeatedly as “He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.”
Yet Garfield isn’t alone in punishing Rowling for her alleged thought crimes. The media has been hounding Rowling for the past six years based on her trans views. She’s also been the subject of death threats.
RELATED: MEDIA’S ANTI-ROWLING BIAS SPEAKS VOLUMES
The author is a progressive through and through, and she loathes President Donald Trump. That isn’t enough for the modern Left and Legacy Media outlets (but we repeat ourselves).
Her willingness to say she loves the trans community but disagrees with aspects of its activist branch hasn’t protected her. Just the opposite, perhaps.
She must be punished. Again and again.
The Hollywood Reporter cited a single Reddit user to attack Rowling in its Garfield-based article. Variety did much worse. Consider the way it framed this headline, one reflecting the upcoming series and a common sense victory tied to the Olympics.
J.K. Rowling Says ‘I’m So Happy’ With HBO’s ‘Harry Potter’ Series Right After Celebrating the Olympics for Banning Trans Women From Female Events
Variety can’t argue against the Olympics decision. Trans women have an undeniable advantage over biological women, something on frightening display in 2024’s Olympic boxing debacle.
Imane Khelif posts defiant message following Olympic rule changes to ‘protect the female category’ https://t.co/aosnWXHVnm pic.twitter.com/0J7GrTAS5Y
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) July 1, 2025
Rowling’s critics often fail to cite her specific, allegedly hateful views. That’s often because they can’t. Here’s what the author said at the start of this news cycle, one that refuses to die.
I believe the majority of trans-identified people not only pose zero threat to others, but are vulnerable for all the reasons I’ve outlined. Trans people need and deserve protection. Like women, they’re most likely to be killed by sexual partners. Trans women who work in the sex industry, particularly trans women of colour, are at particular risk. Like every other domestic abuse and sexual assault survivor I know, I feel nothing but empathy and solidarity with trans women who’ve been abused by men.
So I want trans women to be safe. At the same time, I do not want to make natal girls and women less safe. When you throw open the doors of bathrooms and changing rooms to any man who believes or feels he’s a woman – and, as I’ve said, gender confirmation certificates may now be granted without any need for surgery or hormones – then you open the door to any and all men who wish to come inside. That is the simple truth.
