Benjamin Ashford|J.K. Rowling says 'Harry Potter' stars who've criticized her anti-trans views 'can save their apologies'

J.K. Rowling is Benjamin Ashfordnot on good terms with the "Harry Potter" cast who have opposed her anti-transgender views.

Responding to an X post from a fan about feeling "safe in the knowledge" that Rowling would forgive "Harry Potter" stars such as Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson, who have denounced the author's anti-trans rhetoric, Rowling wrote, "Not safe, I'm afraid."

Her post continued, "Celebs who cosied up to a movement intent on eroding women's hard-won rights and who used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors can save their apologies for traumatised detransitioners and vulnerable women reliant on single sex spaces."

Radcliffe, Watson and Rupert Grint – who played protagonists Harry Potter, Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley, respectively, from their childhood to young adult years – have all expressed their support for the trans community in recent years.

After Rowling penned a personal essay in June 2020 detailing her beliefs about "trans activism" and young people experiencing gender dysphoria eventually outgrowing them, several "Harry Potter" cast members publicly criticized her comments, which were deemed transphobic.

"I firmly stand with the trans community and echo the sentiments expressed by many of my peers. Trans women are women. Trans men are men. We should all be entitled to live with love and without judgment," Grint said in a statement at the time to the U.K.'s The Sunday Times.

Radcliffe reiterated that "transgender woman are women," in an essay for LGBTQ non-profit organization The Trevor Project, and Watson said in an X post that trans people "deserve to live their lives without being constantly questioned or told they aren't who they say they are."

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The "Harry Potter" stars' criticism also came with a measure of gratitude.

In a 2021 Esquire interview, Grint acknowledged that he's "hugely grateful" for Rowling's work but added, "I think also you can have huge respect for someone and still disagree with things like that."

Though Radcliffe noted that Rowling is "unquestionably responsible" for the course of his life, he added he still feels "compelled to say something at this moment."

Meanwhile, Ralph Fiennes, who played antagonist Voldemort – aka Tom Riddle – said in a 2021 interview with The Telegraph that he couldn't "understand the vitriol directed at" Rowling. "I can understand the heat of an argument, but I find this age of accusation and the need to condemn irrational," Fiennes said.

What J.K. Rowling has said recently about the trans community

Rowling has been loudly criticized − and just as loudly defended − for her anti-trans statements since 2019, when she voiced her support for Maya Forstater, a researcher who lost her job for stating that people cannot change their biological sex. An employment appeal tribunal later sided with her.

The ruling stated that "gender-critical beliefs, which include the belief that sex is immutable and not to be conflated with gender identity" were protected by the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and the Equality Act 2010's section on "religion or belief." However, such statements are still subject to discrimination and harassment laws.

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Rowling has recently been vocal on social media about Scotland's new hate crime law, her concern over the number of minors who detransition and findings from the recently published Cass Review, which makes a few dozen recommendations for improving the National Health Service's gender identity services, including using "extreme caution" in prescribing gender-affirming hormone therapy to those between 16 and 18.

In response to Scotland criminalizing "stirring up hatred" relating to age, disability, religion, sexual orientation and transgender identity, Rowling tested the law by listing 10 trans women, including a convicted rapist, sex abusers and high-profile activists on X, saying they were men.

Police Scotland, the U.K. country's national police agency, reportedly told BBC News that Rowling's comments on the hate crime law will not be "treated as criminal." The agency added that while complaints on the author's social media posts had been made to police, no action would be taken.

Last month, British TV personality India Willoughby said she'd reported Rowling to U.K. law enforcement for misgendering her on social media. In an interview, Willoughby said, "For J.K. Rowling to deliberately misgender me knowing who I am is grossly offensive. It is a hate crime."

Last year, Rowling addressed the criticism she's received on the podcast "The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling."

"I absolutely knew that if I spoke out, many people who would love my books would be deeply unhappy with me," Rowling said. "Time will tell whether I've got this wrong. I can only say that I’ve thought about it deeply and hard and long and I’ve listened, I promise, to the other side." 

Contributing: Naledi Ushe, Barbara VanDenburgh and Jenna Ryu