Keira Knightley Claims She Didn’t Know J.K. Rowling Controversy Before Joining Harry Potter Cast

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Actress Keira Knightley stated she was unaware of the J.K. Rowling controversy before joining the Harry Potter audiobook cast.

Keira is known for her work in movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Pride and Prejudice. In September, it was announced that Keira and other cast members (Kit Harrington, James McAvoy, and others) would be joining the audiobook series Harry Potter: The Full-Cast Audio Editions. Keira is cast as Dolores Umbridge, one of the secondary antagonists in the Harry Potter franchise. Fans of the franchise recognize this character, played in the original movies by British actress Imelda Staunton.

J.K. Rowling, on the other hand, isn’t just recognized for the wizarding books she wrote. In 2020, she faced backlash for a series of tweets that alienated the trans community. In addition to this series of tweets, her history shows many anti-Trans tweets liked and saved by the author all the way to 2018 on X. Since then, she has made it a point to be a crusader against trans people.

Social media was swift to criticize others for joining the cast despite the controversy. Keira responded in an interview with Decider when asked about joining the project.

“I was not aware of that, no. I’m very sorry.” She says. “You know, I think we’re all living in a period of time right now where we’re all going to have to figure out how to live together, aren’t we? And we’ve all got very different opinions. I hope that we can all find respect.”

During this, she gave a little laugh while responding to the question. This started some backlash in the comments, with some not finding her apology genuine. One commenter saw her as a “teenager apologizing when they get told off for talking.”

For those reading, let this be a lesson to always do your research. The J.K. Rowling controversy circulated a few years ago, and many cannot separate the author from her harmful comments and tweets. Many stars are responding to this day, such as singer-songwriter King Princess and even actor and comedian Nick Frost, the latter of whom is playing Rubeus Hagrid in the future Harry Potter HBO Max series. J.K. Rowling continues to push back, but our community pushes her back more, even if others are unaware of her misdoings.