“It’s people like you that are making the world a worse place.”
That’s one of the milder pieces of feedback Maysa Pritilata has received for encouraging people not to buy the upcoming video game Hogwarts Legacy.
Widely expected to be one of the biggest games of the year so far when it launches this week, it gives players the chance to become their own witch or wizard in JK Rowling‘s fantasy world.
It’s the first release in more than a decade of a major new Harry Potter game. It’s also the first big new game in the franchise since Rowling’s stance on transgender rights became a subject of public debate.
Search for the game online and you don’t have to look far to find opposition among the excitement; a Twitter video encouraging people to boycott has amassed more than nine million views; gaming forum ResetEra has banned all mention of the game; major site GameSpot published an essay about Rowling’s “anti-transgender stance”; and a fundraiser asking people to donate to a trans charity instead of buying the game has amassed more than £6,000.
For Maysa, a trans woman whose article about Hogwarts Legacy for openDemocracy brought vitriol to her inbox, it makes the decision to boycott an easy one.
“I’m not boycotting it because I think my money is going to seriously harm the publisher, Warner Bros, or Rowling.
“But why would I do it to myself? Why would I do it to other people, who would feel like I’m validating the game?”
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Trans fan ‘found solace’ in Potter
Since writing about her stance, Maysa’s inbox has regularly housed abusive messages from people who are excited about the game and support Rowling.
But not everyone who feels hurt by Rowling’s views can so easily brush her most famous creation aside.
“As a fandom, we have been looking forward to this game before it was even announced,” says Asher Chelder, a transgender Potter fan who admits his relationship with the franchise is “complicated”.
“I found a lot of solace in the series and it’s something I can’t shake. It’s part of who I am.”
Asher, who is part of the social media team at Potter fan site MuggleNet, is certainly not alone in his excitement.
But while many of those who have pre-ordered have done so out of pure anticipation, others say they’ve done so to spite the boycott movement or to show support for Rowling.
Asher says he was once one of “many LGBTQ people who looked up to Rowling”, whose views now “genuinely hurt people”.
Representatives for Rowling, who denies being transphobic, declined to comment when contacted by Sky News.
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0:35
Scotland’s gender bill explained
‘This is an important moment’
In the US, where Human Rights Watch has warned that a record number of anti-LGBTQ bills were filed by state politicians in 2022, there is also opposition to Hogwarts Legacy.
“This is an important moment to stand in solidarity with a very marginalised group with a large target on their back,” says game developer Brianna Wu, who received death threats in 2014 during the gamergate scandal – a misogynistic online campaign against women in the industry.
A former developer on Hogwarts Legacy, Troy Leavitt, left the project in 2021 after it emerged he had posted videos defending the campaign. He said he had resigned despite being “absolutely secure in my position”.
Separating art from the artist
Warner has confirmed that Rowling was not directly involved in the creation of the game, but states they “collaborated closely” with her team on the project in an FAQ page on the game’s website.
Actor Sebastian Croft, who provides one of the voices players can choose for their character, claimed he did not know about her views when he accepted a role. He joins Potter film stars like Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson in speaking out against Rowling’s comments.
The latter saw Sky News blocked from asking Potter actor Tom Felton about Rowling at a media event. Warner subsequently said that was “wholly wrong”, hailing Rowling as “one of the world’s most accomplished storytellers”.
“We are proud to be the studio to bring her vision, characters, and stories to life now – and for decades to come,” a statement said.
Warner did not respond to multiple requests for comment about Hogwarts Legacy from Sky News.
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JK Rowling censorship row explained
‘No real way to erase her’
The dilemma is one grappled with on a daily basis by Asher and his colleagues at MuggleNet, the world’s oldest Potter fan site, which launched back in 1999.
It now hosts a page outlining its dedication to trans people, stating that Rowling’s views are “out of step with the message of acceptance and empowerment” in her books.
Creative director, Kat Miller, tells Sky News: “We are all cognisant of the fact that she created this world, and there’s no real way to erase her from that – and that’s not our goal.
“But… it’s not only her views that are bothersome, but the fact she doesn’t listen to people who are consistently telling her she’s causing harm.”
For Asher, distancing Rowling from her work makes it easier. He is still planning to play the game, but accepts that “people might hate” him, and that some LGBTQ people might not understand his actions. A view, he says, they have every right to.
“I’m just glad at the very least Rowling’s been separated from it as much as she can.”
Neither star has publicly addressed the rumours but Tom’s comedian father, Dominic Holland, has now confirmed the pair are set to wed.
He wrote in a post on his Patreon account: “Tom, as you know by now was very incredibly well prepared. He had purchased a ring.
“He had spoken with her father and gained permission to propose to his daughter.”
“Tom had everything planned out… When, where, how, what to say, what to wear,” he added.
Dominic also noted that while most men worry about being able to afford an engagement ring, he suspects his actor son was “more concerned with the stone, its size and clarity, its housing, which jeweller”.
Tom and Zendaya met on the set of Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2016, when they played the titular hero and his love interest MJ, respectively. Their romance was confirmed in 2021.
In his post, Tom’s father admitted fears over whether being in the spotlight could put a strain on the couple’s relationship.
He wrote: “I do fret that their combined stardom will amplify their spotlight and the commensurate demands on them and yet they continually confound me by handling everything with aplomb.”
“And even though show business is a messy place for relationships and particularly so for famous couples as they crash and burn in public and are too numerous to mention […] yet somehow right at the same time, I am completely confident they will make a successful union.”
Paris Hilton says her “heart has shattered into a million pieces,” after visiting the charred remains of her Malibu beach house which has been destroyed in wildfires sweeping LA.
Describing herself on Instagram as “in complete shock,” the hotel heiress said seeing her family memories “reduced to ashes” was “devastating”.
Meanwhile, Mel Gibson has said the loss of his family home and all his belongings in the fire was “emotional”. It burned down while he was recording the Joe Rogan Experience in Texas.
At least 10 people have been killed in the blazes, which have been burning for four days, forcing 179,000 to evacuate their homes. Tens of thousands of acres of land still burning.
The fires affected multiple celebrities, as the fires have ripped through exclusive suburbs in southern California, home to film stars and billionaires.
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Celebrities’ homes have burned down in the LA fires
Hilton, 43, said she watched her home burn to the ground on TV – and shared a video on social media from inside her gutted home.
She said she was grateful to be safe along with her husband Carter Reum and their two children, Phoenix and London, but was devastated to have lost her family home.
She wrote on Instagram: “I’m standing here in what used to be our home, and the heartbreak is truly indescribable.
“When I first saw the news, I was in complete shock – I couldn’t process it. But now, standing here and seeing it with my own eyes, it feels like my heart has shattered into a million pieces.”
She has lived in the multi-million-pound property for three years.
Hilton added: “This house wasn’t just a place to live – it was where we dreamed, laughed, and created the most beautiful memories as a family.
“It was where [son] Phoenix’s little hands made art that I’ll cherish forever, where love and life filled every corner. To see it reduced to ashes… it’s devastating beyond words.
“What breaks my heart even more is knowing that this isn’t just my story. So many people have lost everything. It’s not just walls and roofs – it’s the memories that made those houses homes. It’s the photos, the keepsakes, the irreplaceable pieces of our lives.”
She described herself as “incredibly lucky,” adding: “My loved ones, my babies, and my pets are safe. That’s the most important thing”.
She thanked the firefighters, first responders and volunteers who she said were “all risking their lives” to help, adding “Even in the ashes, there is still beauty in this world”.
‘When I got home, it wasn’t there’
Braveheart star Mel Gibson, who was away when the fires began, told NewsNation’s Elizabeth Vargas Reports that the home he had lived in for over a decade had burned while he was appearing on an episode of the Joe Rogan podcast.
The 69-year-old actor said it was “emotional” to know all his belongings have been lost, but he was doing his best to stay positive.
He said he felt “relieved from the burden of my stuff, because it’s all in cinders”.
Gibson, who lived in his Hollywood home with his partner Rosalind Ross and their seven-year-old son Lars, described finding out about the loss of his house.
“I was doing the Rogan podcast… And [I was] kind of ill at ease while we were talking, because I knew my neighbourhood was on fire, so I thought, I wonder if my place is still there.
“But when I got home, sure enough, it wasn’t there. I went home and I said to myself, well, at least I haven’t got any of those pesky plumbing problems anymore.”
He said the family’s pet chickens had survived the blaze, and while many “personal things from over the years” had been lost, the important things were still there.
“These are only things. And the good news is that those in my family and those I love are all well, and we’re all happy and healthy and out of harm’s way, that’s all I can care about, really.”
The ancestral home of Big Lebowski actor Jeff Bridges is also understood to have been destroyed.
The four-bedroom home, which had been in the Bridges family for generations, had been inherited by Bridges and his two siblings in 2018 according to the Los Angeles Times.
Tina Knowles, the mother of singer Beyonce, has also lost a house she owned in Malibu to the fires.
She shared a short video of dolphins playing in the sea on Instagram, writing: “This is what I was looking at on my birthday this past weekend from my tiny little bungalow on the water in Malibu! It was my favorite place, my sanctuary, my sacred Happy Place. Now it is gone!!”
She went on to thank the fire department and first responders and offered condolences to others affected by the fires.
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Take That star Mark Owen and his family were evacuated from their home, with his wife Emma Ferguson describing them waking to “helicopters, thick black smoke and winds howling”.
She said while she was grateful her family was safe, it was “exhausting” to be “constantly looking online to see if your house is gone.”
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1:04
Steve Guttenberg: ‘I’ve seen such tragedy’
Actor Steve Guttenberg, best known for his role in the Police Academy film franchise, has called the fires “absolutely the worst” he’s ever seen, and has been doing what he can to help distressed residents.
Other stars to have lost their homes in the fires include Billy Crystal, Miles Teller, Diane Waren, Ricki Lake, Cary Elwes, Milo Ventimiglia, Anna Faris, Adam Brody and Leighton Meester, Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag.
On Friday, the Recording Academy, which runs the Grammy Awards, and charity MusiCares have pledged $1m (£813,000) to support music artists impacted by the fires.
Actress Jamie Lee Curtis has pledged the same amount to fire relief efforts from her family foundation.
Alec Baldwin has filed a lawsuit against prosecutors who pursued a criminal charge against him after the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust.
The Hollywood actor, who was the lead actor and co-producer of the Western film, was pointing a gun at Ms Hutchins when it fired in October 2021.
The cinematographer was killed and director Joel Souza was wounded.
Baldwin, 66, was accused of involuntary manslaughter but his trial was upended in July when a judge threw the case out based on the misconduct of police and prosecutors over the withholding of ammunition evidence from the defence.
He has now filed a lawsuit for malicious prosecution and civil rights violations against those involved in pursuing the charge.
The lawsuit alleges that prosecutors intentionally concealed evidence that would absolve Baldwin from blame and “sought at every turn to scapegoat” him to “maliciously bring about or advance” the actor’s trial and conviction.
It claims the defendants, which include special prosecutor Kari Morrissey and Santa Fe district attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies, were “blinded by their desire to convict Baldwin for all the wrong reasons”.
In a statement, Ms Morrissey said: “In October 2023 the prosecution team became aware that Mr Baldwin intended to file a retaliatory civil lawsuit.
“We look forward to our day in court.”
Representatives for Ms Carmack-Altwies have been contacted for comment.
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2:48
From July 2024: Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey accused of calling Baldwin a ‘c*********’
Baldwin’s lawsuit has been filed less than a month after Ms Morrissey withdrew an appeal over the court’s decision to dismiss the involuntary manslaughter charge against the actor.
After the lawsuit was filed, Baldwin’s lawyers Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro said in a joint statement: “Criminal prosecutions are supposed to be about the search for truth and justice, not to pursue personal or political gain or harass the innocent.
“Kari Morrissey and the other defendants violated that basic principle, over and over, and trampled on Alec Baldwin’s rights.
“We bring this action to hold the defendants accountable for their misconduct and to prevent them from doing this to anyone else.”
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1:58
From November 2024: Tributes paid to Halyna Hutchins at Rust premiere
Baldwin had always denied the charge of involuntary manslaughter, maintaining he did not pull the gun’s trigger and that others on the set in New Mexico were responsible for safety checks on the weapon.
If he had been convicted, he could have faced up to 18 months in prison.
According to the prosecution, the actor had behaved recklessly during a scene rehearsal on the set near Santa Fe, playing “make believe with a real gun” and violating “the cardinal rules of firearm safety”.
Baldwin’s defence team argued this was not true – saying he was “an actor, acting” and “committed no crime”.
Following repeated suggestions from defence lawyer Alex Spiro that evidence had been concealed, in an unusual move, Ms Morrissey called herself to the witness stand during the trial, despite the judge telling her she was not required to do so.
Mr Spiro told the court that she had referred to the actor as a “c*********” and an “arrogant p****” to witnesses. Ms Morrissey said she did not recall this.