John Lithgow accepted the iconic role of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in HBO’s “Harry Potter” TV series, and he has no regrets.
The upcoming TV show, which will be a new retelling of J.K. Rowling’s books with a fresh cast including Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, and Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, has been caught in the crossfire of backlash related to Rowling’s controversial opinions on transgender women.
In an interview with The Times published on Sunday, Lithgow said he didn’t expect to catch criticism for starring in the series because of Rowling’s opinions.
“I thought, ‘Why is this a factor at all?'” Lithgow said. “I wonder how J.K. Rowling has absorbed it. I suppose at a certain point I’ll meet her, and I’m curious to talk to her.”
The actor explained he wasn’t thinking about Rowling — he was thinking about the two late, great actors, Richard Harris and Michael Gambon, who inhabited the role before him and died soon after.
“It was a big decision because it’s probably the last major role I’ll play,” Lithgow said. “It’s an eight-year commitment, so I was just thinking about mortality and that this is a very good winding-down role.”
The actor said he got a sense of the coming backlash after a good friend who has a trans child sent him an essay about Rowling’s views on transgender people. “That was the canary in the coal mine,” Lithgow said.
When asked if the situation made him think differently about playing Dumbledore, Lithgow responded, “Oh, heavens no.”
This isn’t the first time Lithgow has been in a project connected to controversy. The actor also stars in the West End production of “Giant,” which examines the life of author Roald Dahl, who faced backlash during his career for making antisemitic comments.
“It’s so interesting to me at this moment in my life, when I’ve always loved entertaining kids, that I should be engaged with these writers — J.K. Rowling and Roald Dahl — who are geniuses at entertaining kids but have had crises among adults,” he explained.
A representative for J.K. Rowling did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
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