Miriam Margolyes says she ‘worries about’ adult Harry Potter fans: ‘They should be over it by now’
Miriam Margolyes doesn’t seem to get the excitement around Harry Potter. (Getty)
Lesbian actor Miriam Margolyes has spared no one’s feelings when sharing her views about Harry Potter fans.
The star, who starred in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, also said she doesn’t quite understand the franchise’s appeal.
“I worry about Harry Potter fans,” she said. “They should be over that by now. You know, I mean, it was 25 years ago and it’s for children. I think it’s for children, but they get stuck in it.”
Speaking to 1News New Zealand, the Blackadder actor added that, as part of her work on personalised video commissioning website Cameo, she often hears about people having Harry Potter themed weddings.
“Gosh, what’s their first night of fun going to be? I can’t even think about it,” she said.
The multimedia series has become increasingly embroiled in a controversy centred around its creator JK Rowling’s comments about trans people over the last few years.
Margolyes distanced herself from Rowling’s views in a 2020 interview with The Times, saying that (Rowling) “has a rather conservative view of transgender people.”
“I can’t make it out. it’s a matter of personal happiness for people and I think that’s what you should concentrate on,” she said. “If you seriously want to become a woman you should be allowed to. You can’t be a fascist about it.”
In the same year, she shared a Cameo message saying that she wasn’t a Harry Potter fan despite starring in the series of films.
“I’m just not interested,” she said. “I’ve never seen a film. I’ve never seen the books, I’ve never read them. I just pocket the money when it comes and I’m very grateful for it.”
Despite regularly reaffirming her support for trans people, Miriam Margolyes said to Radio Times in 2022 that she “admires” Rowling as a “human being” and believed the criticism she has faced over her views has been “misplaced.”
“I don’t know her at all. I admire her as a human being,” Margolyes said. “She’s a generous woman, she’s a brilliant writer.”
Recently, JK Rowling was criticised for misgendering trans journalist India Willoughby and accusing her of “cosplaying a misogynistic male fantasy” in a social media post.
Willoughby said she was “genuinely disgusted” by the post, adding that she is “every bit as much a woman as JK Rowling.”
