J.K. Rowling's Anti-Trans Remarks Cast A Shadow Over The Reported 'Harry Potter' Series

You'd think reports of a new Harry Potter series would be a magical treat for fans of the franchise, but it's actually turned out to be quite the opposite. After news broke that HBO Max may be developing a show set within the wizarding world, scores of fans took to social media to say they will not be watching the potential new project. These tweets about the reported Harry Potter series will help explain why. (And yes, it has everything to do with J.K. Rowling's anti-trans statements.)

The Hollywood Reporter first broke news about a Harry Potter TV show reportedly being developed by HBO Max on Monday, Jan. 25, with reports that the streaming service was actively searching for writers and pitches for a series set within the iconic magical universe. HBO Max has yet to confirm a Harry Potter series is in the works, and reports claim the network doesn't even have an idea about what the show could center on yet. A rep from WarnerMedia (which owns HBO Max and the studio that produced the original movies) told Elite Daily that "there are no Harry Potter series in development at the studio or on the streaming platform." However, this could simply mean the project is still in very early stages.

Regardless of whether there will actually be a Harry Potter series coming to HBO Max, even just the whisper of the new project got fans talking. The heated reaction boils down to the franchise's creator, J.K. Rowling, who was the subject of public scrutiny throughout 2020 for her anti-trans remarks. At the end of 2019, Rowling tweeted her support for a researcher who had lost her job for posting that "men cannot change into women." Rowling gained even more attention in the summer of 2020 when she posted numerous anti-trans statements on Twitter, stemming from her issue with the term "people who menstruate." Rowling went on to defend her statements in an essay on her website.

In the wake of Rowling's unapologetically transphobic comments, many Harry Potter fans aren't comfortable supporting any new projects that would earn the author money, and since the author created the entire wizarding world, any series using her characters or names would likely do just that, even if she's not significantly involved in making the show.

Since it sounds like everything is still in extremely early stages, fans will have to wait to see what will happen with this reported project.