Her agent typed out the question cautiously: "I have a feeling I know the answer, but I have to ask—Harry Potter, hard pass?" "Black Mirror" director Ally Pankiw's reply was just one line: "Absolutely fucking not! Haha (but thanks for asking)." She posted the screenshot to Instagram with the caption: "Turns out declining to fund transphobia is really this easy."
Pankiw directed the 2023 "Black Mirror" episode "Joan Is Awful." She later clarified that the offer was "to direct, not act, obviously." The point was clear: this wasn't a spur-of-the-moment reaction—it was a concrete job offer being concretely turned down.
In the comments, "Loki" director Kate Herron chimed in with her own experience: "They've asked me twice, and every time I have to explain that my answer will never be yes." With both directors' accounts side by side, this becomes more than a personal statement—it points to an ongoing process within the industry that rarely gets said out loud.
Both directors' refusals point to the same issue: J.K. Rowling's public stance on gender issues and her role as executive producer on this new HBO series. This is also the core reason behind calls to boycott the show and the criticism some cast members have faced for taking part.
By contrast, the actors who chose to stay have taken a more nuanced stance. Bel Powley, who plays Aunt Petunia, said she "strongly disagrees" with Rowling on the issue, emphasizing that the trans community "deserves safety, dignity, and full acceptance." John Lithgow, cast as Dumbledore, said he considered dropping out but ultimately stayed, calling Rowling's position "ironic and baffling," while insisting the original books themselves are "on the side of the angels, against bigotry and discrimination." Nick Frost, who plays Hagrid, said his views are "completely at odds with hers." Paapa Essiedu, cast as Snape, signed an open letter calling on the UK entertainment industry to protect trans rights. Nicholas Hoult, recently announced as Professor Lockhart, has yet to publicly respond to the criticism.
HBO's adaptation is planned for seven seasons, one book per season, with the first installment based on "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" set to premiere on HBO Max this Christmas. Pankiw and Herron's "no" arrives ahead of the show's launch, adding its own footnote to the story before it even airs.
