J.K. Rowling Backs & Praises New Harry Potter Series as Fans Push Back Over Controversy
J.K. Rowling has shared her excitement about the new Harry Potter TV series coming to HBO in 2026. She said she read the first two episodes and loved them, saying on X (formerly Twitter), “I read the first two episodes of the forthcoming HBO Harry Potter series and they are SO, SO, SO GOOD!” Rowling also made it clear she isn’t writing the show herself, but said, “No, but I’ve worked closely with the extremely talented writers.”
I read the first two episodes of the forthcoming HBO Harry Potter series and they are SO, SO, SO GOOD!
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) June 21, 2025
This new series will be a reboot of the original Harry Potter books, turning each book into one season of television. That means there will be seven seasons in total. HBO and Warner Bros. are producing it, and filming is set to start in the summer of 2025.
The series was first talked about in early 2021, confirmed in 2023, and will now air on HBO after originally being planned for the Max streaming platform.
Casting is already in motion. In September 2024, an open call was held in the UK and Ireland, and about 32,000 kids auditioned to play Harry, Ron, and Hermione. On May 27, 2025, it was announced that Dominic McLaughlin will play Harry Potter, Alastair Stout will be Ron Weasley, and Arabella Stanton will play Hermione Granger.
Other cast members include Lox Pratt as Draco Malfoy and John Lithgow as Dumbledore. Lithgow, an American actor, admitted he didn’t know the series very well before being cast, but he’s reading the books now and said, “as the kids grew older [in the books], you learn more and more about Dumbledore, and he became a much more surprising, complicated character.”
The decision to cast Lithgow raised some eyebrows because the original movies only cast British or Irish actors, something Rowling herself pushed for at the time. Lithgow said he plans to use a dialect coach to match the British accent.
Even though Rowling is excited about the show, a lot of Harry Potter fans are not. Many have decided to boycott the series because of Rowling’s views about transgender people. In the past, she made comments that a lot of people found offensive, and she supported a UK court ruling that said trans women can’t be legally recognized as women.
Her statements have caused a big backlash. Over 400 people in the film and TV industry signed a letter asking the industry to stand up for trans rights. One of the people who signed that letter is Paapa Essiedu, who is playing Snape in the new show.
HBO boss Casey Bloys talked about this issue in a podcast called The Town with Matthew Belloni. He said, “The decision to be in business with J.K. Rowling is not new for us. We’ve been in business for 25 years. We already have a show on HBO from her called C.B. Strike.”
He added, “It’s pretty clear that those are her personal, political views. She’s entitled to them. Harry Potter is not secretly being infused with anything. If you want to debate her, you can go on Twitter.” He also said the most important thing for HBO is what people see on the screen, not what Rowling says online. “Obviously, the Harry Potter story is incredibly affirmative and positive and about love and self-acceptance. That’s our priority — what’s on screen.”
Rowling is helping with the project as an executive producer through her production company, Brontë Film and TV. She was part of the original pitch for the show and continues to give feedback.
The show is still in the early stages, but fans, both supporters and critics, are watching closely as it moves toward its 2026 release. Whether it will win people over or face more controversy remains to be seen.
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