WB Interactive President Responds To Ongoing Debate Over Supporting JK Rowling

Warner Bros. Interactive president David Haddad has responded to employee questions around the company's involvement with the work of J.K. Rowling, following the author's repeated transphobic comments, saying, " I might not agree with her stance on a range of topics, but I can agree that she has the right to hold her opinions." As reported by Bloomberg's Jason Schreier (from a video sent out of an internal meeting), Haddad was asked about the company's association with Rowling after the announcement of Hogwarts Legacy. His response was:

"Not a lot I can comment on, other than, since we did get so many [questions], I wanted to be responsive the best way I could. "The way I think I’d like to do it is, I’d like to echo something you’ve heard from our most senior executive leadership. "While JK Rowling is the creator of Harry Potter, and we are bringing that to life with the power of Portkey, in many places, she’s a private citizen also. And that means she’s entitled to express her personal opinion on social media. I may not agree with her, and I might not agree with her stance on a range of topics, but I can agree that she has the right to hold her opinions."

The statement follows months of controversy around Rowling's views on trans women and gender identity, which have drawn condemnation from the likes of Harry Potter actors Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe among others. Warner Bros. has been drawn into the debate because of its somewhat uncertain connection with Rowling. WB Interactive has a licensing deal in place for Harry Potter, and makes franchise games under the Portkey Games label. While the company has made clear that Rowling is "not directly involved" with Hogwarts Legacy, it has declined to comment on whether the author will receive royalties from the game. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/09/16/hogwarts-legacy-official-reveal-trailer"] It's led to an ongoing discussion about boycotts for the game, with some arguing that the author's views shouldn't be tacitly supported by buying work associated with her, while others point out the potential negative consequences on the developers of the game (most of whom will have little say on the products they make) if sales are low. It's within the context of this debate that Haddad has been asked for his opinion - and his comments are likely to spark further debate around his company's vested interests in Rowling's work, and the intersection between public opinion and what many consider to be hate speech. Schreier added that, later in the Q&A, Haddad answered a question specifically about diversity and inclusion in WB Interactive products, explaining that the company was working with LGBTQ organisations, and he had personally talked to the director of trans media representation at GLAAD. Haddad apparently did not mention Rowling in this context. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.