A few weeks ago, the video game community was taken by surprise when Warner Bros. Interactive officially revealed the long-rumored Harry Potter: Hogwarts Legacy, an open-world RPG title set in the all-familiar Wizarding World.
When it was first announced, avid fans were expectedly overjoyed. After all, the Harry Potter franchise is a part of so many people’s childhoods, and enrolling in Hogwarts – which is something Hogwarts Legacy can do for you in-game – is the childhood dream of many.
However, the announcement wasn’t purely met with positive reactions. Shortly after, the game and Warner Bros. Interactive found itself in a tough spot, with some individuals calling for the boycott of the upcoming title due to the fact that it’s linked to J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series.
In case you didn’t know, J.K. Rowling is currently under fire for making several controversial comments on her social media accounts that have heavily transphobic implications.
Due to these statements, the trans community and its supporters, as well as some Harry Potter fans in general, have started a boycotting campaign against Rowling and anything associated with her – books, movies, and video games included.
Understandably, the Harry Potter community currently has differing opinions on whether or not Hogwarts Legacy should be supported. Even though many fans are angered by Rowling’s transphobic comments, some don’t agree that the game should be boycotted for two reasons.
First of all, they say that people should learn to separate the art from the artist, and second, the developers who worked so hard on the title shouldn’t be punished because of the author.
Up until now, the fans have been restlessly waiting for Warner Bros. Interactive to address the issue. In fact, some fans have even said that they won’t support Hogwarts Legacy until the developers publicly condemn the hurtful views of Rowling.
However, it appears that the studio has finally spoken its mind, with Warner Bros. Interactive’s president, David Haddad, saying that Rowling “has the right to hold her opinions.”
Today during a company Q&A, Warner Bros. Games president David Haddad addressed employees' questions surrounding the recent announcement of Hogwarts Legacy and Harry Potter author JK Rowling's anti-trans comments. His comments, per video clip sent to me this afternoon: pic.twitter.com/cbYZ0JT9c0
— Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) September 30, 2020
According to a tweet by Bloomberg’s video game reporter Jason Schrier, Haddad was answering questions asked by the employees regarding J.K. Rowling and the inevitable effect she has had and will have on the Hogwarts Legacy game.
Haddad then responds to these queries by saying that the author is a “private citizen” and as such, “she’s entitled to express her personal opinion on social media.” The president does clarify that he doesn’t agree with Rowling’s point of view, but he does believe that she still has the right to believe what she wants to believe.
From what we can glean from this statement, Warner Bros. Interactive is doing its very best to separate itself from the author without directly insulting her. In fact, in Hogwarts Legacy’s FAQ page, Warner Bros. Interactive states that Rowling is not directly involved with the upcoming RPG and that its plot is an original one.
However, the fact that the game itself is based on Harry Potter’s Wizarding World, which was created by J.K. Rowling, doesn’t sit well with many fans.
