The author has broken her silence on a media report speculating about whether she will "sack" HBO's 'Harry Potter' star Paapa Essiedu after he signed a trans rights petition.

J.K. Rowling said in a new post on X that she does not have the power to fire Paapa Essiedu from HBO's "Harry Potter" television series, nor would she exercise such power if she had it. "I May Destroy You" Emmy nominee Essiedu is set to play Severus Snape on the show.

As a result, the series itself has become a hotbed of discourse and criticism. Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan recently took to IG to speak out against the author, the show, and the recent UK Supreme Court's unanimous ruling that a "woman" in equality legislation should be defined as referring to a "biological woman and biological sex."