Harry Potter cast and Director Chris Columbus reuniting for HBO Max New Years Day 2022 special

[Kyuuji]

Yeah the twitter stuff was something I added to illustrate how taking her off the property would hurt her more in a more visible way, I feel. Creators can be disgraced and distanced from their creations. I like the Minecraft example of what I would like the HP franchise to become. Imagine if the HP franchise had a trans protagonist in one of their spin-offs. Or if the games let's you be identify in any way possible. The IP can still be good and speak louder than the hateful creator that has been removed from the work.

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I think it would be abjectly distasteful to have anything trans affirming embedded into the IP itself, while it remains as damaging as it is to trans people through Rowling. You say the IP can speak louder than the creator but until it competes with the below, when it comes to Rowling having..

• Helped drive trans children toward self harm and suicide.
• Helped reduce the ILGA score of the UK by being a prime motivator in increased hostility towards trans people.
• Related transition to being a new form of gay conversion therapy, one that should be further restricted.
• Given voice, promotion and platform to numerous transphobes and large anti-trans groups.
• Led a revolt that saw the most basic reform for Gender Recognition in the UK scrapped, despite a 70% approval rating.
• Added to a pressure that resulted in links to support systems for vulnerable trans children being removed by the BBC.
• Put out numerous transphobic articles and tweets turning perception of fans and followers against trans people.
• Helped influence a move that saw young trans people face further hardships in accessing trans-affirming healthcare.
• Been cited by foreign politicians in their own bids to restrict trans rights, healthcare access and freedoms.
• Poisoned discourse around trans access to bathrooms, increasing the violence and uncertainty trans people face.

..then I don't see it. I think it's a desire born from people wanting to retain a guilt-free connection to the IP more than it is a concern for the trans community.

 

[SalvaPot]

I think it's a desire born from people wanting to retain a guilt-free connection to the IP more than it a concern for the trans community.

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It can be both. But maybe I'm just saying that because, at least to me, Harry Potter is not J. K. Rowling and viceversa.

But really, at this point you have a much better argument than I do. It's really hard to separate author from work, even if I feel the Harry Potter books are fine by themselves, there is no denying that Rowling has weaponized her influence to do evil. I do believe she can be deplatformed and removed of a lot of influence by just taking the IP from her, like Trump lost a lot of his support when the presidency and twitter was taken from him.

Again, I admit I may be naive in this approach.

 

[Persephone]

imagine caring about Harry Potter in the year of our lord 2021 with everything we know about Rowling... pretty cringe bro. and I say this as someone who was OBSESSED with HP as a child.

 

[Kyuuji]

It can be both. But maybe I'm just saying that because, at least to me, Harry Potter is not J. K. Rowling and viceversa.

But really, at this point you have a much better argument than I do. It's really hard to separate author from work, even if I feel the Harry Potter books are fine by themselves, there is no denying that Rowling has weaponized her influence to do evil. I do believe she can be deplatformed and removed of a lot of influence by just taking the IP from her, like Trump lost a lot of his support when the presidency and twitter was taken from him.

Again, I admit I may be naive in this approach.

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It could be but it isn't, because the idea that a trans character is a salve to the damage she causes trans people is one that holds no rational basis. It's not a benefit, it's a detriment. It is entirely focused on that person wanting to enjoy the IP guilt-free while using trans affirmation as a veil for that desire. You have the luxury of separating Harry Potter from Rowling, I really don't as I'm keenly aware of the influence she wields and how much weight people give her words solely as a consequence of it.

I appreciate the opportunity to go into it though, since this discussion has a place wherever hype for this fetid franchise pops its head up.

 

[loco]

I wish I took a photo of it but someone taped over JK Rowling on the Harry Potter books at our local library and put LP Router over it instead. I'm not sure if the library did that or someone else.

 

[Fodder Aplenty]

..then I don't see it. I think it's a desire born from people wanting to retain a guilt-free connection to the IP more than it is a concern for the trans community.

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It's 100% this. It's people hoping for that so that they can continue doing what they're already doing except they don't have to feel bad anymore.

 

[SalvaPot]

It could be but it isn't, because the idea that adding a trans character is somehow a salve to the damage she causes trans people is one that holds no rational basis. It's not a benefit, it's detrimental. It is entirely focused on that person wanting to enjoy the IP guilt-free while using trans affirmation as a veil for that desire. You have the luxury of separating Harry Potter from Rowling, I really don't as I'm keenly aware of the influence she wields and how much weight people give her words solely as a consequence of it.

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That is a good point and you are probably right about her influence (And your articles linked are great sources), but would you rather the IP doesn't allow for trans characters to be part of the universe in a positive light? The IP is already bigger than any influence she could have. And I admit I'm lucky in being able to separate the actor and the work because I'm priviledged that way, and I'm here talking with you because I want you to see that this way of seeing things exist, people like me who want a different approach at tackling the issue. You probably think I'm wrong, and chances are I am, but I want to believe that softer approaches, working together with the harsher approach you and your community are working on, help at least a little bit. I'm not an authority or anything, I'm just a random guy on the internet just trying to make piece with me liking a dumb children series. Real issues like trans rights obviously are way above my feelings on a magic kid.

I just don't want to run away from the conversation because it's a hard one to have and not look like an asshole (Me). I believe in compromises, but I get that is not enough for a lot of people and I'll be rightfully quoted and called out on it for it.

Is it wrong of me to express hope for the I.P. when I see Rowling not getting invited to the reunion? It smells like blood in the water, for me it's a start. We all know the I.P. will be much much better with her away from it. For me at least she no longer represents what I liked about HP anyway.

 

[Kyuuji]

That is a good point and you are probably right about her influence (And your articles linked are great sources), but would you rather the IP doesn't allow for trans characters to be part of the universe in a positive light? The IP is already bigger than any influence she could have. And I admit I'm lucky in being able to separate the actor and the work because I'm priviledged that way, and I'm here talking with you because I want you to see that this way of seeing things exist, people like me who want a different approach at tackling the issue. You probably think I'm wrong, and chances are I am, but I want to believe that softer approaches, working together with the harsher approach you and your community are working on, help at least a little bit.

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Yes. I would rather not have a trans character in something that is ultimately ruinous for trans people. I think it would be a detriment, as that allows for people to support it as it continues to harm trans people through Rowling, while believing that they're doing so in good conscience. I also disagree that the IP is bigger than the influence she has because the IP cannot wield itself for trans rights in the same surgical manner she can against them. The net result remains a negative, because Rowling is very capable and effective in attacking our rights, freedoms and lives directly.

I just don't want to run away from the conversation because it's a hard one to have and not look like an asshole (Me). I believe in compromises, but I get that is not enough for a lot of people and I'll be rightfully quoted and called out on it for it.

Is it wrong of me to express hope for the I.P. when I see Rowling not getting invited to the reunion? It smells like blood in the water, for me it's a start. We all know the I.P. will be much much better with her away from it. For me at least she no longer represents what I liked about HP anyway.

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I don't think you look like an asshole, I just think that a large part of your desire is cut with wanting to remain attached to the franchise. So I naturally have a colder and more blunt outlook on this because fondness for the franchise is nothing to me when set against the situation she has caused, and continues to provoke. It simply isn't part of my equation at this point.

 

[SalvaPot]

Yes. I would rather not have a trans character in something that is ultimately ruinous for trans people. I think it would be a detriment, as that allows for people to support it as it continues to harm trans people through Rowling, while believing that they're doing so in good conscience. I also disagree that the IP is bigger than the influence she has because the IP cannot wield itself for trans rights in the same surgical manner she can against them. The net result remains a negative, because Rowling is very capable and effective in attacking our rights, freedoms and lives directly.


I don't think you look like an asshole, I just think that a large part of your desire is cut with wanting to remain attached to the franchise. So I naturally have a colder and more blunt outlook on this because fondness for the franchise is nothing to me when set against the situation she has caused, and continues to provoke. It simply isn't part of my equation at this point.

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We may not agree entirely (As I feel there is some room to save the I.P.) but I do see your point, and ultimately your diagnostic is probably what is going to happen, since I feel it's going to be hard to divorce Rowling from the I.P. until she is dead.

 

[stupei]

imagine caring about Harry Potter in the year of our lord 2021 with everything we know about Rowling... pretty cringe bro. and I say this as someone who was OBSESSED with HP as a child.

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Yeah, a huge percentage of my closest friends as an adult are people I originally bonded with over our shared love of the franchise and literally all of us bailed on it when Rowling went mask off. I can't imagine being someone who admits you care more about books for children then you do other human beings.

 

[uhnomoli]

Doubt it. This just seems to be similar to what HBO did with the Friends cast reunion

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Yeah, I don't know why everyone thinks this is a new movie announcement…

 

[deepFlaw]

She has pull but she also has opposition, if she loses the grip she has on the I.P. it also shows that she is facing consequences for her views and effectively showing she is losing influence. If she was not invited to the reunion that will probably hurt her more (personally) than her getting cancelled on twitter.

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So let's think about a few things.

1. What you're describing is not anyone "taking" anything from her or facing any consequences. It's not a punishment. It's a company paying her a ridiculous amount of money for it or even just relative control of it.
2. She has so much money already. Sooooo much money. Money that continues to come in. I do not think there is an amount of money Warner could reasonably offer her that could be enough to make her feel the need to sell the franchise and control of it entirely. (Frankly it's also unlikely that any deal would make it so she can never profit off the series again to begin with. It's not enough if they just buy control of the films and pay her not to say anything controversial while promoting them.)
3. We know she generally doesn't want to give up control over the series. It's why that epilogue existed, it's why she's still the person writing the current trainwrecks. It's part of why you'd have to pay her so much.
4. A company wanting to pay a ton of money to her to go away does not mean she's losing influence. It gets more attention on her - it's a free opportunity to whine for sympathy over how the mean company hates her so much for her totally progressive and feminist beliefs, and wants to pay her to be quiet. And #2 means she can reject it solely to spite people with 0 consequences, because she has so much money that it's still another drop in the bucket.
5. If, despite all this, she actually takes an offer... great job. You've given an absolute ton of money to the person who is extremely interested in using it to make the world worse for trans people! And the other side of #2 is that her taking the money also means she actually did not care that much about having that control to begin with. So... congrats to WB for bribing an influential TERF to let them say she doesn't have anything to do with their next movie, I guess? Surely the fact that the next movie might have a character with 20 seconds of screen time during which they vaguely imply they're trans to the main character, purely done for any amount of good PR as they try to rehabilitate the series' image, was worth the real world cost!
6. Even if #5 happens, she can even still pull #4 because her fans/fellow TERFs will go "look how desperate they were to silence her!" and she can just silently encourage it even if she's being paid to not outright agree. Double congrats, now she's got the bribe money and there's still attention being given to her over it.
7. Your hopes for something like this all operate under the assumption that if some miracle occurred where she sold the franchise only to then burn the money and decide to go live in a cave by herself with no contact with the outside world for the rest of her life, then the series that she's created is now completely free of her influence. And that would be an incorrect assumption. Her current work is already drowning in her rancid beliefs and ideology; her writing was, as you'd expect, based on her view of the world. And this is always who she was, it's not new. It affects the books to varying degrees, it's not exactly all unsalvageable, but there is quite a bit of stuff that's tied up in her shit politics if you look at it critically. And so to go "she's gone, it's all fine now" still lets her off the hook.

It is not a problem to still get enjoyment from the series where you can find it. Just please don't kid yourself over how this works.

And like... listen, I'm a pretty damn overly sentimental person. And I can be overly afraid of change. But I can still promise you that you can find other things out there that will mean just as much to you that don't require you to shut your eyes to their creator's bigotry first.

 

[MouldyK]

Trailer is here:

 

[Razmos]

Surprised this thread was never locked.

Fuck JK Rowling and anyone who still supports her franchise 🤷

 

[Sabercrusader]

I am looking forward to this more than I was thinking I would given JK. I am glad that they are not including her. I can't really support another movie or book in this franchise but I really do want to watch this because of my experience with the franchise growing up.

It's difficult. I really don't want to support JK, but I would really like to watch this and reminisce a little alongside the cast. I am fully capable of never even looking at another book or movie, but this is something that I would really like to watch and it's hard to reconcile that with the fact that it's probably going to support JK in some way.

 

[Strider_Blaze]

I'm honestly pretty certain Rowling is still getting royalties out of it. Again I'm not even going to bother watching even a second of it.

 

[Hollywood Duo]

I am looking forward to this more than I was thinking I would given JK. I am glad that they are not including her. I can't really support another movie or book in this franchise but I really do want to watch this because of my experience with the franchise growing up.

It's difficult. I really don't want to support JK, but I would really like to watch this and reminisce a little alongside the cast. I am fully capable of never even looking at another book or movie, but this is something that I would really like to watch and it's hard to reconcile that with the fact that it's probably going to support JK in some way.

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If it makes you feel any better I doubt there is any pay structure around number of views since it's a monthly subscription. If she got paid it was likely a lump sum up front.

 

[rsfour]

Lotta cowards in that trailer that I'm not clicking.

 

[Messofanego]

If it makes you feel any better I doubt there is any pay structure around number of views since it's a monthly subscription. If she got paid it was likely a lump sum up front.

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She's getting paid on top of her trans hate and anti-civil rights campaigns, so I would disagree how that can make someone feel better. She's in fact being rewarded, and doesn't even have to show her face, so no effort and all reward. I'm totally agreed with Kyuuji and deepFlaw's arguments stated above. It's folks still reaching for a guilt-free association to this franchise more than anything else.

 

[Hollywood Duo]

She's getting paid on top of her trans hate and anti-civil rights campaigns, so I would disagree how that can make someone feel better. She's in fact being rewarded, and doesn't even have to show her face, so no effort and all reward. I'm totally agreed with Kyuuji and deepFlaw's arguments stated above. It's folks still reaching for a guilt-free association to this franchise more than anything else.

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Fair enough, I don't have any desire to watch it but I can understand the urge for people who grew up with these actors to see the retrospective.

 

[Captain C]

Threads like this are fucking wack. There are always two conversations going on at once, one about JKR (or CDPR in CP2077 threads) being transphobic, and the other just ignoring that conversation as if it were not happening at all.

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Yeeaaahh it's absolutely egregious watching threads like this or CP, or even the THQNordic threads of people bringing up important controversies that we as a community should take seriously, and the other half literally ignore it because "i GrEw uP WiTh HaRrY pOtTeR" like trans people didn't too, and now live with the author using her massive platform to remove their rights.

 

[The Emperor]

Trailer is here:

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I feel nothing seeing this
And it was my childhood

Rowling has destroyed the love I have for this but being a POS. It has tainted Harry Potter for me.
I am not adding to streaming views for this.
But I don't even care anymore. Fantastic Beasts also soured the franchise anyway

 

[Koukalaka]

Matthew Lewis becoming an absolute stud will never not be funny to me.

But yeah... absolutely no desire to watch this at all.

 

[Aske]

The fact that we are apparently full steam ahead on the rehabilitation of HP as a franchise after Rowling's transphobic manifesto is fucking depressing.

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Agreed. Unless every piece of content featured a huge disclaimer in support of trans rights, in which case I'd still personally feel too gross to watch it, but I'd consider it a net good in the world.

 

[Aske]

It could be but it isn't, because the idea that a trans character is a salve to the damage she causes trans people is one that holds no rational basis. It's not a benefit, it's a detriment. It is entirely focused on that person wanting to enjoy the IP guilt-free while using trans affirmation as a veil for that desire. You have the luxury of separating Harry Potter from Rowling, I really don't as I'm keenly aware of the influence she wields and how much weight people give her words solely as a consequence of it.

I appreciate the opportunity to go into it though, since this discussion has a place wherever hype for this fetid franchise pops its head up.

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I'd agree with this. Adding a token trans character feels like it would be the HP franchise trying to have its cake and eat it.

I feel like a big, loud and proud disclaimer on screen at the start of every piece of media is different, because it's using the popularity of the IP to call out the creator. It's active denouncement versus passive distancing. That said, if trans folks disagree, I completely defer to them.

 

[Jombie]

This will be dedicated solely to the actors blowing smoke up each other's asses, while the creator is harming a section of people some of them claim to stand up for.

 

[Razmos]

I mean Radcliffe came out when this was announced saying how much of a nice lady Rowling is. They'll still publically fellate her if it will make them money. Cowards

 

[Vincent Alexander]

I see that screencap and feel nothing but anger. It can't be said enough, but fuck JK Rowling. I used to be a massive fan....Got my son and wife into Harry Potter. Met some of the actors. It's all been poisoned by her hate speech though.

 

[Armadilo]

Looks so good and the trailer definitely makes this seem like a must watch for fans by the looks of it

 

[plagiarize]

I really wish someone would buy out the brand from her. Corporate overlords don't suck as much as this fucking TERF.

I won't watch this. I won't watch the next Fantastic Beasts movie (didn't watch the last one).

It even makes me feel guilty about wanting to go to Universal Studio Islands of Adventure to ride the Jurassic World Velocicoaster, because JK will see some of my park entry ticket.

 

[AliceAmber]

Given that JK Rowling is a horrible human being, we're going to lock this and any other trailer / hype threads to further discussion.