Pedro Pascal and Nicola Coughlan Criticize Harry Potter TV Series
Numerous celebrities are joining fans in a boycott of HBO’s forthcoming Harry Potter television series due to J.K. Rowling’s controversial views on transgender issues.
Pedro Pascal expressed his views on the ongoing controversy surrounding Rowling’s role in the new series via a recent Instagram comment, as the Harry Potter author is set to be an executive producer on the show.
“Don’t watch the show. Don’t go to Universal. Don’t buy a single Harry Potter thing ever. It’s time to tell these corporations that transphobia loses money,” wrote Instagram user Tariq Ra’ouf in a video calling for a Harry Potter boycott in response to Rowling, 59, celebrating the U.K. Supreme Court’s ruling defining womanhood by biological sex.
Pascal, 50, supported this opinion in the comments, stating, “Awful disgusting S*** is exactly right. Heinous LOSER behavior.”
Pascal, who stars in one of HBO’s leading series, The Last of Us, has long been a supporter of the transgender community. His sister, Lux, is a trans actress and model. He showcased his support at the London premiere of Marvel’s new film Thunderbolts by wearing a “Protect the Dolls” T-shirt, designed by Conner Ives, to raise awareness and funds for Trans Lifeline.
Nicola Coughlan also voiced her disapproval of the Harry Potter series on social media after the U.K. Supreme Court’s ruling this month. In a recent Instagram Story, she shared a news piece from The Cut criticizing Rowling for celebrating the ruling with a photo of herself enjoying a drink and a cigarette. “I love it when a plan comes together,” Rowling wrote in her X post on April 16.
Below the screenshot, Coughlan, 38, wrote, “Keep your new Harry Potter lads. Wouldn’t touch it with a ten-foot pole.”
Like Pascal, Coughlan has leveraged her platform for LGBTQIA+ rights over the years. Following the U.K. Supreme Court’s ruling, the Bridgerton actress has raised over £120,000 (approximately $150,000) for the charity Not a Phase, aimed at improving the lives of trans adults in the U.K.
Rowling has previously addressed the fan-organized boycott shortly after the show’s announcement in April 2023. “Dreadful news, which I feel duty-bound to share. Activists in my mentions are trying to organize yet another boycott of my work, this time of the Harry Potter TV show,” she stated via X at that time. “As forewarned is forearmed, I’ve ensured a stock of champagne.”
Additionally, she has criticized members of the Harry Potter film cast, including Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson, for their support of the transgender community. “Celebrities who aligned with a movement that threatens women’s rights and have used their platforms to endorse the transitioning of minors can keep their apologies for the traumatized detransitioners and vulnerable women reliant on single-sex spaces,” she tweeted in April 2024, responding to a fan mentioning Radcliffe and Watson as actors she might “forgive.”
HBO’s upcoming Harry Potter series plans to dedicate one season to each of Rowling’s seven Harry Potter books. The main casting for characters Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger has not yet been announced, but John Lithgow is confirmed to portray headmaster Albus Dumbledore.
Other cast members include Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell, and Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch. The series is anticipated to premiere in 2026 or 2027.
