Indian broadcaster Willoughby said she had filed a police complaint against JK Rowling, author of the “Harry Potter” series, due to alleged transphobia.
In an interview with Byline TV on Wednesday night, Willoughby – a former “Celebrity Big Brother” contestant and co-host of “Loose Women” – claimed she reported Rowling to Northumbria Police for repeated online misrepresentations as part of an ongoing dispute.
“JK Rowling has definitely committed a crime. I am legally a woman. She knows I am a woman, and she called me a man,” Willoughby said in the interview. “It is a protected characteristic, and this is a violation of both the Equality Act and the Gender Recognition Act. She tweeted it to her 14 million followers.
Willoughby continued, saying: “I reported JK Rowling to the police for what she said, and I don’t know if that will be treated as a hate crime, or malicious communications – but it’s a full-fledged crime, as far as I’m concerned.”
Northumbria Police and Rolling representatives did not immediately respond diverseRequest for comment.
Rowling responded to Willoughby’s announcement X, formerly known as Twittersaying she had consulted a lawyer who said: “Not only did I have a clearly winnable case against India Willoughby for defamation, but India’s obsessive targeting of me over the past few years may amount to legal harassment.”
The author went on to claim that “gender-critical views can be protected in law as a philosophical belief.” “There is no law that forces anyone to pretend to believe that India is a woman.”
“While I realize that lying to law enforcement is a crime, I simply must explain to the police that India, in my view, is a classic example of a narcissistic male living in a perpetual state of narcissism,” Rowling added. Anger because he cannot force women to accept him at his own discretion.
Rowling has come under fire in recent years for her views on the transgender community, especially trans women, which many have viewed as transphobic. Her comments were criticized by those in the “Harry Potter” universe, including Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint and Eddie Redmayne. However, in an earnings call on February 23, Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav said: Discovery, said executives recently met with Rowling about Max’s upcoming “Harry Potter” series.
“We spent some real time with JK and her team,” Zaslav said on the call. “Both sides are thrilled to reignite this franchise. Our conversations have been great, and we couldn’t be more excited about what’s to come. We can’t wait to share a decade of new stories with fans around the world on Max.”