Harry Potter star hits back at claims he owes his career to JK Rowling
Original Harry Potter director Chris Columbus has called controversy surrounding JK Rowling ‘very sad’ (Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)
Original Harry Potter director Chris Columbus has called controversy surrounding JK Rowling 'very sad' (Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)
Scottish actor Sean Biggerstaff, who played Gryffindor Quidditch captain Oliver Wood in the Harry Potter films, has expertly hit back at claims JK Rowling gave him his acting career.
Biggerstaff was inundated by anti-transgender trolls after voicing his support for the trans community last week, following the UK Supreme Court’s ruling that the term “woman” legally refers to “biological woman”, therefore excluding trans women.
Biggerstaff responded to a post from gender-critical TV writer Graham Lineham who, after the Supreme Court’s ruling, posted a photo of Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint.
All three of the actors have voiced pro-trans views and addressed Harry Potter author JK Rowling’s vocal, gender-critical stance on the trans community.
“Wonder how these disloyal bags of sh*t are doing today,” Lineham wrote in his post.
“You don’t have to wonder,” Biggerstaff replied, in a post which has garnered two million views on X/Twitter. “You know what they’re doing – leading happy and successful lives, having not driven their families away with their hateful obsessions.”
Biggerstaff was referencing Lineham’s past claims that he lost work opportunities and his marriage due to his repeated remarks about the trans community.
After the post went viral, Biggerstaff faced a barrage of abuse from other gender-critical posters on the social media platform.
After one dubbed Biggerstaff a “pr*ck” and suggested he and the lead Harry Potter actors had achieved fame “off the back” of Rowling, he replied: “Is there any other area of work/life where people regularly suggest that you owe eternal fealty to any former colleague whose success you have benefited from, regardless of subsequent events?”
Is there any other area of work/life where people regularly suggest that you owe eternal fealty to any former colleague whose success you have benefited from, regardless of subsequent events? https://t.co/Gq5sE3i0EP
— Sean Biggerstaff (@Seanchuckle) April 22, 2025
Another called the actor “shameful, unnecessary and ungrateful” as Rowling “gave him the opportunity to be who he is”.
In response, Biggerstaff quipped: “Wait, does everyone think Jo Rowling came down to my school or youth club and personally picked me out of total obscurity or something?”
Wait, does everyone think Jo Rowling came down to my school or youth club and personally picked me out of total obscurity or something? https://t.co/3G3Kynm1gT
— Sean Biggerstaff (@Seanchuckle) April 22, 2025
Prior to being cast in the Harry Potter films – of which he only appeared in three of seven – Biggerstaff already had a burgeoning career in TV and film.
The 42-year-old appeared alongside to-be Harry Potter stars Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson in the the 1997 drama film The Winter Guest.
He had also already appeared in BBC drama The Crow Road alongside Joe McFadden and Peter Capaldi ahead of his Harry Potter debut in 2001.
After a Rowling fan questioned whether Biggerstaff had begun refusing earnings from his Harry Potter role, the actor joked: “Absolutely yeah. I figured, if ever I’m not keen on anything Jo’s said, it’s only right that Warner Bros Inc keep hold of the money they owe me. This is obviously sane.”
Absolutely yeah. I figured, if ever I'm not keen on anything Jo's said, it's only right that Warner Bros Inc keep hold of the money they owe me. This is obviously sane. https://t.co/PnrWADNt00
— Sean Biggerstaff (@Seanchuckle) April 22, 2025
Last week, Rowling shared a photo of herself celebrating the Supreme Court’s ruling with a cocktail and a cigar, alongside the statement: “I love it when a plan comes together.”
She also marked the day the ruling was announced as “TERF VE Day.”
The author has since suggested that British prime minister Keir Starmer should apologise for his previous support for the transgender community, after Number 10 confirmed yesterday (22 April) that he no longer believes trans women are women.
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