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During a recent interview on the podcast "On Purpose With Jay Shetty," Emma Watson addressed the long-rumored fallout with J.K. Rowling over their conflicting views on transgender issues. Watson clarified that despite their different stances, she harbors no hatred for Rowling and hopes they can one day sit down for a proper discussion to "continue to love and respect each other."
Rowling's reaction to Watson's comments was swift and severe. The author took to X to post a lengthy, unsparing essay detailing her profound disappointment with the actress.
"I've seen a lot of commentary on this, so I'd like to make the following points in response," Rowling began her post. "I don't expect every actor who's played a character I created to agree with me forever. The idea is as absurd as me having to check back with the boss who hired me at 21 to see what views I'm allowed to hold now."
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"Emma Watson and her co-stars have every right to embrace gender identity ideology," Rowling wrote. "That belief is legally protected, and I wouldn't want to see any of them threatened with loss of work, violence, or death because of it. However, Emma and Dan (Daniel Radcliffe) have been particularly explicit in the last few years that they believe their previous professional association with me has given them a special right — no, a duty — to publicly criticise me and my views. Years after they finished performing in the 'Harry Potter' series, they still see themselves as spokespeople for the magical world I created."
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"When you've known someone since they were ten, it's very hard to shake off a protective instinct," Rowling lamented. "Until recently, I hadn't shed the memory of gently coaxing lines out of small children on a big, bewildering film set. For years, I've repeatedly refused requests from journalists to comment specifically on Emma's statements, notably from the podcast 'The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling.' Ironically, I told the producers I didn't want her held responsible for things I'd said."
She continued, "In the segment I'm sharing here, the host specifically highlights a previous witch-like statement from Emma, and honestly, that statement was a turning point for me, but what happened afterwards was more hurtful than the statement itself. At that time, Emma had someone deliver a handwritten note from her, which contained only one sentence: 'I'm so sorry for what's happening to you' (even though she has my phone number)."
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"At the time, the death, rape, and execution threats against me were at their peak," Rowling recalled. "My personal security had to be stepped up, and I was constantly worried about my family's safety. Emma had just publicly fanned the flames, yet she thought a single-sentence note of concern would make me feel her heartfelt sympathy and goodwill."
Rowling scathingly remarked, "This is the behavior of someone who has never experienced adult life without the buffer of wealth and fame. Emma is so lacking in real-world experience that she doesn't know how ignorant she is. She will never have to stay in a shelter, will never be placed in a mixed-sex public hospital ward, and I'd be shocked if she's ever been in a commercial changing room as a child."
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The author further illustrated why she feels Watson is out of touch: "The 'public toilets' she's experienced are single-occupancy rooms with security posted outside the door. Has she ever had to undress in the newly established mixed-sex changing rooms at a municipal swimming pool? Will she ever need help from a state-funded rape crisis center that refuses to guarantee it will serve all women? Will she ever share a cell with a male rapist who has been placed in a women's prison?"
Rowling then contrasted this with her own life: "I wasn't a millionaire at 14. I was living in deep poverty when I wrote the book that made Emma famous. Therefore, I know from my own life experience what it means for women and girls who don't share her privilege when she so enthusiastically participates in movements that trample on women's rights."
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"The supreme irony is that if Emma hadn't declared in her most recent interview that she loves and values me — a change of tune I suspect is due to her noticing that harshly condemning me is no longer as fashionable as it once was — I might never have written so honestly," Rowling concluded. "An adult can't expect to fuel a radical movement that regularly calls for the assassination of a friend, and then claim a right to that former friend's love, as though that friend were their mother. Emma has the right to oppose my views and to speak publicly about her feelings for me — but I have the same right, and I've finally decided to exercise it."