Daniel Radcliffe is "really sad" about Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling's anti-transgender comments and hasn't spoken to the writer in years.
The 34-year-old actor has reiterated his support for the LGBTQIA2S+ (abbreviated LGBTQ+) communities and their related civil rights during an interview with The Atlantic.
"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," said Radcliffe, who portrayed the protagonist in all eight Harry Potter films from 2001 to 2011.
Highlights
- Daniel Radcliffe expressed sadness over J.K. Rowling's anti-trans comments and hasn't spoken to her in years.
- Radcliffe reiterated his support for LGBTQ+ rights, responding to Rowling's criticism of Harry Potter actors.
- In 2020, Rowling mocked an article for using "people who menstruate", sparking controversy over her views.
While the Tony Award nominee is grateful to have taken part in The Wizarding World, he still feels like he should speak out against Rowling's comments and highlight their differing views regarding the communities' rights.
Image credits: John Phillips/Getty Images
"Jo [Joanne Rowling], obviously Harry Potter would not have happened without her, so nothing in my life would have probably happened the way it is without that person," he added.
"But that doesn't mean that you owe the things you truly believe to someone else for your entire life."
Responding to a recent message shared by the 58-year-old author about how she wouldn't forgive the Harry Potter actors for their advocacy for LGBTQ+ communities, Radcliffe said, "I will continue to support the rights of all LGBTQ+ people and have no further comment than that."
"It makes me really sad, ultimately, because I do look at the person that I met (...) and the world that she created, and all of that is to me so deeply empathic," he expressed
Image credits: daniel9340
The Kill Your Darlings actor also explained why he addressed Rowling's anti-transgender comments in 2020.
"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 to help people who had been negatively affected by the comments. And to say that if those are Jo's views, then they are not the views of everybody associated with the Potter franchise."
The Trevor Project is a suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ youth in America. Radcliffe has been supporting and contributing financially to the organization since 2009.
Radcliffe starred in all eight of the Harry Potter films adapted from Rowling's fantasy novels
Image credits: Harry Potter
In 2020, Rowling provoked controversy after mocking an article for using the term "people who menstruate," a common term used to include people who don't identify as women but still have their period.
"'People who menstruate. I'm sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?" the mother-of-three wrote at the time on X.
In a separate post the same year, Rowling wrote, "If sex isn't real, there's no same-sex attraction. If sex isn't real, the lived reality of women globally is erased.
"I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives. It isn't hate to speak the truth."
Though "sex" is sometimes incorrectly thought to have the same meaning as "gender," the terms describe different constructs. The World Health Organisation defines sex as "the different biological and physiological characteristics of males and females, such as reproductive organs, chromosomes, hormones, etc."
Meanwhile, gender refers to "the socially constructed characteristics of women and men – such as norms, roles and relationships of and between groups of women and men."
The 34-year-old actor reiterated his support of the rights "of all LGBTQ+ people" after Rowling accused him of "eroding women's hard-won rights"
The lead actor of Rowling's popular fantasy series responded to her remarks in an essay published on the Trevor Project, writing, "Transgender women are women. Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations."
Last April, Rowling made a comment about the Cass Review, which looked at gender identity services for under-18s in NHS England.
The review, by Pediatrician Dr. Hilary Cass, concluded that gender medicine operated on "shaky foundations" when it came to the evidence for medical treatment like prescribing hormones to pause puberty, as per the BBC.
Puberty blockers can be used to delay the changes of puberty in transgender and gender-diverse youth who have started puberty, the Mayo Clinic states. They're not recommended for children who have not started puberty.
The medicines used for this purpose, GnRH analogues, don't cause permanent physical changes but pause puberty instead, giving young people a chance to explore their gender identity. When a person stops taking GnRH analogues, puberty starts again, Mayo Clinic explains.
In April, the best-selling author accused Radcliffe and his Harry Potter co-star Emma Watson of "using their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors"
Image credits: Jon Furniss/Getty Images
Following the release of the British-government-funded report, the English native took to her social media to say she was "bloody angry" about what she called "severe medical malpractice."
"Kids have been irreversibly harmed, and thousands are complicit, not just medics, but the celebrity mouthpieces, unquestioning media and cynical corporations," she shared.
A fan then responded to her rant on X, saying, "Just waiting for Dan and Emma [Watson] to give you a very public apology … safe in the knowledge that you will forgive them."
The best-selling author stated that she wouldn't accept an apology from the Harry Potter stars. "Not safe, I'm afraid," she said, characterizing Radcliffe and Watson as "celebrities who cozied up to a movement intent on eroding women's hard-won rights and who used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors."
People praised Radcliffe's response to Rowling's anti-trans stance
