J.K. Rowling has made no bones about her political feelings in recent years, and this week the topic came up again after one of the the new Harry Potter series actors Paapa Essiedu signed an “open letter” calling for the protection of trans rights amidst recent UK political rulings. Rowling said she’d never deny Essiedu work, but how does HBO feel about working with so many talents across a broad political spectrum?
Well, head honcho Casey Bloys recently spoke on the record over the matter after podcast host Matthew Belloni asked him on The Town if he monitored Rowling’s Twitter (X) account, which is where the author and producer is most active with her views. Bloys said he is “very aware” of how she feels personally but it does not impact the relationship Rowling has with Max.
No [I’m not nervous to do business with her]. I’ve said this before the decision to be in business with J.K. Rowling is not new for us. We’ve been in business for 25 years. We already have a show on HBO from J.K. Rowling called CB Strike that we do with the BBC.
Rowling’s been a cash cow for the studio, with the eight Harry Potter movies grossing more than $9.5 billion in total and spawning spinoffs with the Fantastic Beast movies and plenty of opportunities in the theme park space and with merchandise. Just recently, a new Potter shop opened in Chicago, and Tom Felton was even on hand to greet a gaggle of fans.
While the new Max series is reportedly going to cost a fortune, I'd assume the studio is hoping it will be a boon for those with a Max subscription. As part of that deal, per Bloys, Rowling is entitled to her own personal opinions, as he feels we all are.
I think it’s pretty clear those are her personal political views. She’s entitled to them. Harry Potter is not being secretly infused with anything and she’s entitled to those views… if you want to debate her, you can go on Twitter.
Just shortly after the podcast broke, Rowling was asked about Paapa Essiedu seemingly disagreeing with her take on what is happening in the UK. A judge recently upheld transgender protections, but ruled there that the legal definition of the word “woman” would be based upon biology. Essiedu and others have felt there are wide-ranging implications to this, but while Rowling disagrees, she wrote on X that she did not have the power nor would want to cut the new Snape actor.
I don’t have the power to sack an actor from the series and I wouldn’t exercise it if I did. I don’t believe in taking away people’s jobs or livelihoods because they hold legally protected beliefs that differ from mine.
While Rowling has been notably vocal in her beliefs, and will be involved in the upcoming series, in general movie and TV sets are a hodgepodge of different types of people all working together for a common goal. The narrative surrounding Potter has simply been louder than most.
Harry Potter is set to become a new series with a new cast in 2026, and some actors like the aforementioned Felton have stated they are interested in a cameo.
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