JK Rowling and The Culture War heading into 2025

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It is an unlikely return reminiscent of Harry Potter, "The Boy Who Lived", himself (or the Dark Lord Voldemort depending on your opinion). J.K. Rowling, author of the globally adored fantasy series who in recent years became a pariah in some quarters over her views on transgender people, appears to have just won the culture war she has been fighting for the past five years.

Since 2019, Rowling has sparked impassioned debate—and backlash—over her statements on trans women and insistence on using male pronouns to describe them. The British-born writer has publicly supported women who question the legitimacy of trans women's gender identities and has dedicated much of her feed on X, formerly Twitter, to speaking out on the issue.

Celebrities condemned her statements, social media users labeled her views "disgusting," and activists branded her a "TERF"—a trans-exclusionary radical feminist. Conversely, she has also received an outpouring of support for her stance, with "#IStandWithJKRowling" trending intermittently on social media whenever the debate resurfaces.

Now, long after Rowling had accepted she might have irreparably tarnished her legacy, she finds herself firmly back in the fold. Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), the entertainment behemoth bringing her Harry Potter franchise back to screens as an HBO TV show, stated in November that not only will it be working with her on the project, it sees no reason to wade into the furor over her trans-related utterances.

HBO chairman and CEO Casey Bloys said at a November 12 press event that Rowling was "very, very involved in the process selecting the writer and the director," and added that Rowling's trans statements "haven't affected the casting or hiring of writers or productions staff" for the show.

A spokesperson for the network followed up with a statement calling Rowling's contributions "invaluable" and saying about her trans crusade: "J.K. Rowling has a right to express her personal views. We will remain focused on the development of the new series, which will only benefit from her involvement."

It is a remarkably loud ringing endorsement from a company that has long kept quiet on Rowling over fears of a backlash from fans. The cultural debate over transgender rights is entering a new phase, and Rowling appears to have emerged as one of the victors. When contacted by Newsweek, a representative of Rowling declined to provide comment for this article.

JK Rowling's Battle Over Transgender Issues
The debate surrounding Rowling's views on transgender issues began in December 2019 and intensified in June 2020, following a series of statements and actions that sparked widespread controversy.

In 2019, Rowling publicly supported Maya Forstater, a researcher who lost her job after making gender-critical statements. In a tweet, Rowling wrote: "Dress however you please. Call yourself whatever you like... But force women out of their jobs for stating that sex is real?"

In 2020, Rowling published a 3,600-word essay on her website defending her views. She expressed concerns about transgender activism, the safety of single-sex spaces, and the rights of women and girls. These views were met with widespread criticism from LGBTQ+ advocacy groups, fans, and individuals who accused her of transphobia.

Online fan communities distanced themselves from her, with some removing her name from fan content or organizing boycotts of Harry Potter-related products. Rowling herself leaned into her controversial status by engaging with her critics on X, framing herself as someone standing against "cancel culture" and advocating for women's rights. "The thing is, those appalled by my position often fail to grasp how truly despicable I find theirs," she wrote in an essay earlier this year.

Rowling's own Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint—whose careers were launched through the franchise—went on record to publicly condemn her comments. Eddie Redmayne, the star of Rowling's Fantastic Beasts spinoff series, also joined the detractors.

"Transgender women are women. Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people," wrote Radcliffe in an essay for The Trevor Project nonprofit in 2020. Newsweek contacted representatives of Radcliffe, Watson, Grint, and Redmayne for comment.

In 2022, Rowling was notably absent from the Harry Potter 20th anniversary special made with stars of the franchise, leading to unconfirmed whispers that her stance on transgender issues had made her too much of a toxic entity. Rowling herself said she declined an invitation to be included in the special.

Why Warner Bros. Is Now Embracing JK Rowling
WBD is hoping Harry Potter can bring the magic back to the troubled entertainment titan. The company has faced significant financial challenges in recent years, reporting a nearly $10 billion loss for the second quarter of this year. On top of that, WBD is carrying approximately $40 billion in net debt.

Under CEO David Zaslav, the company has reevaluated its content portfolio, concentrating resources on successful franchises to maximize profitability and audience engagement. The planned HBO Harry Potter TV series, a seven-season project, with each season dedicated to one of the books, is the cornerstone of this strategy. The show is expected to enter production next year before a release in 2026.

For WBD, siding with Rowling suggests the reward of having the author in the creative process outweighs the risk of a backlash.

"By publicly supporting J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros. is investing in a colossally creative and successful author, as opposed to taking a public stance on the controversial transgender topic," Evan Nierman, CEO of global PR firm Red Banyan, told Newsweek.

"For Rowling, Warner Bros.' endorsement reinforces her resilience in the face of online invective and positions her as a creative force too integral to the Harry Potter franchise to ignore. Her refusal to be canceled in the face of sustained attacks illustrates how to avoid being permanently silenced," he added.

WBD's backing of Rowling "is a business move by a studio plain and simple," Dylan Thomas Cotter, a publicist and transgender advocate, told Newsweek

Writer and cultural analyst Areej Shaikh said that while the decision by WBD signals a potential shift in how corporations handle cancel culture, Rowling herself might not have won the culture war against her critics.

"This decision indicates a change toward more publicly endorsing contentious personalities when their creative influence is valued, but it does not necessarily mean Rowling has 'won' the cultural war," she told Newsweek.

"Warner Bros. seems to be putting the Harry Potter franchise's cultural and financial history ahead of the divisive controversy surrounding her personal beliefs. This strategy implies that instead of adopting clear-cut positions, firms may now be navigating cancel culture with a higher emphasis on striking a balance between public opinion and creative contribution."

Shaikh warns that Rowling might need to be more careful now that her name has been prominently attached to a major project, considering what's at stake.

Tide Turns in Transgender Debate
WBD's defense of Rowling suggests a shift in the cultural landscape surrounding transgender rights. Earlier this month, Donald Trump triumphed over Kamala Harris in the presidential election with a campaign that put transgender issues center stage. "Kamala is for they/them. President Trump is for you," according to one Trump ad that ran over 15,000 times. Trump also vowed at an October rally in his native New York that he would "keep men out of women's sports" if elected.

Americans are broadly supportive of preventing discrimination against transgender people. A Pew Research Center survey of 10,188 U.S. adults in May 2022 found that around 8 in 10 said there was discrimination against transgender people and a majority said they should be protected from discrimination in "jobs, housing and public spaces."

However, on specific issues, such as the involvement in sports that Trump highlighted, there is less agreement. A YouGov poll conducted in January found that 59 percent of Americans oppose allowing transgender athletes to play on sports teams that match their gender identity compared to 19 percent who support it. The same poll found 50 percent of Americans oppose allowing transgender people to use bathrooms that match their gender identity, compared to 31 percent that support it.

"Given Trump's reelection, this shift is not surprising, and I anticipate that it will become the norm," Nierman said.

Trump's win comes amid a growing backlash to transgender rights in recent years. Bud Light's decision to join forces with transgender TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney in 2023 prompted a boycott. Sales plummeted as a direct result. Target and other businesses faced similar attacks for their LGBTQ+ marketing, in some cases doing real damage to their profits.

Multiple companies shied away from supporting Pride month this year and are now rolling back diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies. Bud Light recently announced a new partnership with controversial comedian Shane Gillis, who was fired from Saturday Night Live after making a racial slur about Asian people. Oliver Bateman, writing for online news magazine UnHerd, described the move as "corporate America's way of declaring that the progressive revolution is officially over."

With Rowling's public backing, corporate America appears to have spoken again. But according to Lindsey Chastain, founder and CEO of PR Agency The Writing Detective, Rowling herself is still seen as a pariah figure among her detractors.

"If you visit BookTok, Bookstagram, or Booktube, you will find that she is very much still considered a problematic author and is not widely promoted," Chastain told Newsweek

"Many millennials still mourn the loss of their favorite characters."

Warner Bros. Discovery and the BBC have been accused of double standards on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) after both organizations have stood by J.K. Rowling amid a hardening in her transgender rights rhetoric.

WBD is working closely with Rowling on HBO’s Harry Potter television series, while the BBC has this week premiered Season 6 of Strike based on the author’s Robert Galbraith novels. Rowling is an executive producer on both projects and her company, Brontë Film and TV, is also attached.

The support for Rowling’s work has alarmed members of the transgender community working in the media, who have noted how the writer’s language on trans issues has evolved from measured disagreement to a coarser tone over the past four years.

In interviews with Deadline, these people argued that WBD and the BBC’s platforming of Rowling’s work sits uncomfortably with internal policies around fairness and inclusivity for transgender employees.

WBD Support Sows Confusion
Bamby Salcedo, the CEO of TransLatin@ Coalition who has spoken at WBD staff events about transgender allyship, told Deadline it was “disappointing” that “confusion has been created” between the company’s progressive messaging for staff and its support for Rowling.

“Whatever the Harry Potter creator says influences the way people think,” Salcedo said. “It’s important that decision-makers [at WBD] truly understand how their actions can potentially turn into violence for our communities.”

WBD has supported Transgender Awareness Week and the company re-introduced its “Global Gender-Affirming Guidelines” last year, encouraging employees to respect pronouns and support transgender colleagues. Yvette Urbina, a DEI vice president at WBD, told Salcedo’s podcast last year that the company had a duty to “provide a safe space” for trans employees to “live authentically.”

At an event in London earlier this month, HBO boss Casey Bloys added that he was “totally comfortable” with Rowling’s involvement in the Harry Potter series. He pointed to the success of video game Hogwarts Legacy as a signal that Rowling’s opinions are unlikely to be an issue for viewers.

BBC’s “Hostile Environment”
Freddy McConnell, a transgender journalist who works with the All About Trans initiative to educate media organizations about trans issues, said: “I just don’t think people realize how extreme J.K. Rowling’s tweets are, and the BBC and HBO are relying on that ignorance.”

McConnell, who fronted the BBC documentary Seahorse: The Dad Who Gave Birth, added that the backing of Rowling reinforced perceptions in the trans community that the British broadcaster is “institutionally transphobic” and has a “hostile working environment.”

If Rowling were an employee or freelancer at the BBC, her Twitter/X posts would likely be problematic. The corporation’s diversity and inclusion policy states that intentionally using incorrect pronouns could amount to bullying and harassment, while social media guidelines require “respect and civility” in public discourse, including not attacking individuals with different views.

Av source, who is well-connected among transgender BBC employees, said the premiere of Strike<simply contributed to a lingering sense of unease among staffers. LGBTQIA+ employees revolted against the BBC in 2021 over the publication of an online article about transgender women coercing lesbians into sex. Trust has not been restored since.

The number of BBC employees who identify as transgender has more than halved in the past six years from 417 to 166, though the corporation said this was the result of a change in the way it collects data. A spokesperson said: “We are committed to creating an inclusive workforce that reflects and represents the diversity of the UK. The BBC is for everyone and should include everyone whatever their background.”

The British broadcaster is working to tell transgender stories and is currently in production on What It Feels Like For a Girl, an adaptation of Paris Lees’ memoir. Produced by Hera Pictures, the series is expected to premiere next year.

Separating Art From Politics
Deadline encountered a reluctance to discuss Rowling among industry producers and executives, with many unwilling to wade into a culture war. “I’m not touching this one with a 1,000-foot-long Harry Potter wand,” was a response that typified the mood.

Some were sympathetic to WBD’s argument that art should be separated from politics. “If you make decisions based on an opinion you disagree with then you’re in murky water, particularly in a world that champions artistic freedom. You’ve got to be open to a range of voices,” said a seasoned scripted producer.

Others have a different view. On an influential industry freelancer Facebook group earlier this year, one anonymous poster sparked a major debate after calling on colleagues to “disassociate” their productions from Rowling. “I’m requesting that no discussions take place, no quiz questions are written or references are made to her, Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts or any of her other work,” the poster said. “Any mention, even in passing, shows support for her hate-filled views.”

Eva Echo, an activist who works with All About Trans, said: “When she first came out in 2020, people thought it was possible to separate the art from the artist. But given the money that she makes from her intellectual property and what she does with that money for anti-trans causes, it’s virtually impossible now to separate. By keeping her IP alive, that fuels her hateful machine.”

I wish I could be a successful writer, but if it's true most of them are bad people, maybe it's good that I'm not successful.

But I'm already a pretty bad person, so I might as well give it a try. I know I've said and done things I'm not proud of. Most of it, anyway. And people will find out, and cancel me.