Harry Potter Star Reveals J.K. Rowling's Limited Role In New TV Series
As the Harry Potter TV remake ramps up, a franchise star says J.K. Rowling is barely involved, downplaying her role amid ongoing controversy.
HBO is rebooting Harry Potter for TV, and the franchise is once again dragging along its biggest off-screen headache: J.K. Rowling. One of the new show's stars just talked about how involved she actually is, and it might not be what you expect.
John Lithgow on Rowling, and where he stands
At the International Film Festival Rotterdam (via THR), John Lithgow — who is playing Albus Dumbledore in the new series — was asked how he reconciles joining the show with Rowling's public statements about trans people. He was careful, serious, and also pretty blunt about the contradiction he sees between those comments and the heart of the books.
"I find it ironic and somewhat inexplicable that Rowling has expressed such views."
"She is not really involved in this production at all."
In his words, the Potter story is built on acceptance, kindness over cruelty, and all the young-and-old, good-versus-evil stuff that made it a cultural juggernaut. Lithgow also said he has never met Rowling, only read about her statements, and he praised the team adapting the books — calling them remarkable — while describing the project as an eight-year-long TV series he genuinely wants to be part of.
How involved is Rowling, really?
This is where the industry detail gets a little knotty. Lithgow says Rowling isn't really involved in the production — which reads as day-to-day creative distance. At the same time, she is listed as an executive producer on the show. So, yes, her name is on the masthead. And that's exactly why a lot of fans online are still wary of supporting the series: even if she isn't in the writers room, the show's success still benefits her.
Who's making the show
The HBO adaptation is being written by Emmy winner Francesca Gardiner (Killing Eve, Succession). Executive producers include Gardiner, Mark Mylod, J.K. Rowling, Neil Blair, Ruth Kenley-Letts, and longtime Potter producer David Heyman.
The cast so far
- Dominic McLaughlin as Harry Potter
- Arabella Stanton as Hermione Granger
- Alastair Stout as Ron Weasley
- John Lithgow as Albus Dumbledore
- Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall
- Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape
- Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid
- Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell
- Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch
- Katherine Parkinson as Molly Weasley
- Lox Pratt as Draco Malfoy
- Johnny Flynn as Lucius Malfoy
- Leo Earley as Seamus Finnigan
- Alessia Leoni as Parvati Patil
- Sienna Moosah as Lavender Brown
- Bel Powley as Petunia Dursley
- Daniel Rigby as Vernon Dursley
- Bertie Carvel as Cornelius Fudge
So that's where things stand: new cast, new creative team, an eight-year plan, and a very old controversy that is not going away. Lithgow is choosing to focus on the story's core values. Whether the audience does the same is the bigger question hanging over this one.