While the franchise is still active, it’s no longer the cultural juggernaut it once was. In recent years, the nostalgia for the original series has been overshadowed by poorly-received spin-offs and controversies around the books’ author. So with
Harry Potter only becoming more and more divisive by the day, it may be time to finally bid
farewell to the Wizarding World.
The Author Who Must Not Be Named
The most obvious source of controversy within the
Harry Potter franchise is, of course, the franchise itself. Every recent entry in the series has been met with a steady decline in positive reception from fans. While the original
Fantastic Beasts film was generally well-received, the same cannot be said for its critically-panned sequels. Notably, last year’s
The Secrets of Dumbledore was the lowest-grossing film in the franchise’s history. Similarly, the
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child stage play has become divisive among the fanbase. While some have praised it as a thrilling theater experience, others have taken issue with its story, which has often been compared to a bad fanfic. And of course, t
he newly released Hogwarts Legacy video game has already proven polarizing among fans and critics alike.
However, the greatest controversy around the
Harry Potter series comes from the books’ author, J.K. Rowling. Over the past few years, Rowling has become notorious for her increasingly outspoken statements against the transgender community, which have been widely criticized as transphobic. And during a time when anti-trans rhetoric is louder than ever among conservatives around the world, it’s no wonder that many fans don't feel comfortable supporting a creator who is complicit in spreading such prejudice. Rowling’s name has become a blight on the franchise, to the point that
the likes of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Eddie Redmayne, and more have all publicly denounced Rowling’s anti-trans comments.
Alas, transphobia isn’t all that Rowling has been accused of. For instance, there’s her depiction of the goblins throughout the
Harry Potter series. They’re consistently portrayed as long-nosed, greedy bankers who are conniving and untrustworthy by nature: the resemblance to common antisemitic stereotypes should be obvious. And then there’s the matter of Cho Chang, the lone East Asian character within the books. Not only does she have a Korean name — a grammatically incorrect one, at that — despite being Chinese, said name also bears an uncomfortable resemblance to a certain racist phrase.
Additionally, despite Rowling’s much-publicized
declaration that Albus Dumbledore is gay, there’s no actual depiction of his sexuality within the books. Even in the
Fantastic Beasts movies, the focus on Dumbledore and Grindelwald’s past romance is kept to a bare minimum. And in an era where queer representation has become normalized, that’s just not enough for many fans. Of course, as problematic a figure as Rowling has become, there are some who still argue that this shouldn’t impact fans’ enjoyment of the series. And indeed, there are many times when it’s necessary to separate the art from the artist. But in the case of
Harry Potter, that’s easier said than done: Rowling’s
controversial politics are more deeply ingrained into the narrative of the series than one might think.
Eddie-Griffin I'm not going to even ask
All these acronyms.. I can't.
