Overview

• On Sept. 29, Rowling published a detailed message on X attacking Watson’s views and calling her "ignorant of how ignorant she is," while criticizing her wealth and life experience.
• Watson said on a Sept. 24 Jay Shetty podcast episode that she still "treasures" Rowling despite their disagreement on transgender rights and lamented that a conversation "was never made possible."
• Rowling wrote that Watson and Daniel Radcliffe have every right to their beliefs but argued they treat their Harry Potter ties as a special license to publicly critique her.
• She claimed Watson once sent a brief handwritten note during a period when Rowling says threats against her peaked, and she cited Watson’s 2022 BAFTA moment as a turning point.
• The next day, Rowling said she holds "deep affection" for some Harry Potter actors, as coverage noted the renewed dispute unfolding with HBO’s new Potter adaptation in the works.