Pedro Pascal and Nicola Coughlan Slam Harry Potter TV Series

Several celebrities are joining fans who are planning to boycott HBO’s upcoming Harry Potter TV series over J.K. Rowling’s anti-trans views.

Pedro Pascal shared his thoughts on the controversy surrounding Rowling’s involvement in the new series in a recent Instagram comment, as the Harry Potter author will serve as an executive producer on the show.

“Don’t watch the show. Don’t go to Universal. Don’t buy a single Harry Potter thing ever. It’s time to tell these corporations that transphobia loses money,” Instagram user Tariq Ra’ouf captioned a video of themselves calling for a Harry Potter boycott in reaction to Rowling, 59, celebrating the U.K. Supreme Court’s ruling that womanhood is legally defined by a person’s biological sex.

Pascal, 50, agreed with the user’s opinion in the post’s comments section, writing, “Awful disgusting S*** is exactly right. Heinous LOSER behavior.”

Pascal — who stars in one of HBO’s biggest series, The Last of Us — has been an advocate for the transgender community over the years. His younger sister, Lux, is a trans actress and model. He recently showed his support by sporting a “Protect the Dolls” T-shirt at the London premiere of Marvel’s new movie Thunderbolts* on Tuesday, April 22. The shirt, created by designer Conner Ives, is a nod to trans women being nicknamed “dolls” in the LGBTQIA+ community and proceeds support Trans Lifeline.

Nicola Coughlan also took to social media to slam the Harry Potter series following the U.K. Supreme Court’s ruling earlier this month. In a recent Instagram Story, she reposted a news story from The Cut criticizing Rowling for sharing a photo of herself enjoying a drink and smoking in celebration of the ruling. “I love it when a plan comes together,” Rowling captioned the X snap on April 16.

Underneath the news story screenshot, Couglan, 38, wrote, “Keep your new Harry Potter lads. Wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pole.”

Like Pascal, Coughlan has used her platform to advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights over the years. Since the U.K. Supreme Court’s ruling, the Bridgerton star has helped fundraise over £120,000 (around $150,000 in U.S. dollars) for the charity Not a Phase, which helps improve the lives of trans adults across the U.K.

Rowling, for her part, previously addressed fans planning to boycott the show shortly after its April 2023 announcement. “Dreadful news, which I feel duty bound to share. Activists in my mentions are trying to organise yet another boycott of my work, this time of the Harry Potter TV show,” she wrote via X at the time. “As forewarned is forearmed, I’ve taken the precaution of laying in a large stock of champagne.”

She has also criticized members of the Harry Potter film cast — including Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson — for their support of their trans community. “Celebs who cosied up to a movement intent on eroding women’s hard-won rights and who used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors can save their apologies for traumatised detransitioners and vulnerable women reliant on single sex spaces,” she tweeted in April 2024 in response to a fan who named Radcliffe and Watson, both 35, as actors the author would “forgive.”

HBO’s upcoming Harry Potter series will dedicate one season to each of Rowling’s seven Harry Potter books. While casting for the show’s main trio of Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger have yet to be announced, John Lithgow is set to take on the role of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore.

Additional casting includes Janet McTeer as Minerva McGonagall, Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, Nick Frost as Rubeus Hagrid, Luke Thallon as Quirinus Quirrell and Paul Whitehouse as Argus Filch. The series is expected to premiere in 2026 or 2027.