Photo by Gotham/GC Images(LOS ANGELES) — Eddie Redmayne, star of JK Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise, is the latest colleague to criticize the Harry Potter creator for comments she made that were flamed as being anti-trans.
In a statement to Variety, Redmayne said in part, “Respect for transgender people remains a cultural imperative…As someone who has worked with both J.K. Rowling and members of the trans community, I wanted to make it absolutely clear…I disagree with Jo’s comments.”
He continued, “Trans women are women, trans men are men and non-binary identities are valid. I would never want to speak on behalf of the community but I do know that my dear transgender friends and colleagues are tired of this constant questioning of their identities, which all too often results in violence and abuse.”
Redmayne, who played a transgender woman — and earned an Oscar nomination for it — in The Danish Girl, continued, “They simply want to live their lives peacefully, and it’s time to let them do so.”
On Saturday, Rowling tweeted several messages, including, “If sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased. I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives. It isn’t hate to speak the truth.”
The comments ignited condemnation from her fans, as well as from Rowling’s Harry Potter series star Daniel Radcliffe, who posted an essay to the Trevor Project, a non-profit dedicated to intervention and suicide prevention for members of the LGBTQ community.
“Transgender women are women,” he wrote. “Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo or I.”
By Stephen Iervolino
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