Harry Potter's Robbie Coltrane Doesn't Find J.K. Rowling's Comments About Trans People 'Offensive'

Harry Potter actor Robbie Coltrane is defending J.K. Rowling's controversial comments about gender identity and trans people that have been blasted by many of his costars.

The bestselling Harry Potter author, 55, came under fire in June when she appeared to support anti-transgender sentiments in a series of tweets. Though she denied her views on feminism are transphobic, she doubled down on her controversial standpoints in a lengthy essay shared on her website days later.

A number of actors from the Potter films spoke out against Rowling's statements, including Daniel Radcliffe, who said that he was "deeply sorry for the pain these comments have caused."

Coltrane, 70, who played Rubeus Hagrid in all eight Potter films, however, said in a recent interview with the Radio Times that Rowling's comments were not offensive, in his opinion.

“I don’t think what she said was offensive really,” he said, according to The Independent. “I don’t know why but there’s a whole Twitter generation of people who hang around waiting to be offended. They wouldn’t have won the war, would they?”

“That’s me talking like a grumpy old man, but you just think, ‘Oh, get over yourself. Wise up, stand up straight, and carry on,’” Coltrane continued, before adding: “I don’t want to get involved in all of that because of all the hate mail and all that s—, which I don’t need at my time of life.”

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Responding to backlash back in June, Rowling wrote that she refuses to "bow down to a movement that I believe is doing demonstrable harm in seeking to erode ‘woman’ as a political and biological class and offering cover to predators like few before it."

LGBTQ advocates and celebrities quickly spoke out against Rowling's comments, with GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis calling it a "misinformed and dangerous missive about transgender people" that "flies in the face of medical and psychological experts and devalues trans people accounts of their own lives."

Along with Radcliffe, other major stars of the film series based on Rowling's popular book series distanced themselves from her comments.

"Trans people are who they say they are and deserve to live their lives without being constantly questioned or told they aren’t who they say they are," tweeted Emma Watson at the time. "I want my trans followers to know that I and so many other people around the world see you, respect you and love you for who you are."

Rupert Grint issued a statement in response to Rowling’s 3,600-word essay, according to U.K.'s The Sunday Times, saying: “I firmly stand with the trans community and echo the sentiments expressed by many of my peers. Trans women are women. Trans men are men. We should all be entitled to live with love and without judgment.”

Additionally, Eddie Redmayne, star of the Fantastic Beasts movie franchise, told Variety in a statement: “I disagree with Jo’s comments. 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. They simply want to live their lives peacefully, and it’s time to let them do so.”

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