Paapa Essiedu Raises Eyebrows By Calling For Trans Support After Joining The New "Harry Potter" Series

An unfastened missive has been published and co-signed by much than 400 figures from the amusement world, calling for the extortion of transgender rights wrong the industry.

The missive was published successful airy of the UK Supreme Court’s ruling past month, which said that the ineligible explanation of a pistillate lone constituted those that were assigned pistillate astatine birth.

In the weeks since, there’ve been near-constant discussions astir the extortion of transgender radical and their rights successful the media, portion the fall-out has seen the British Transport Police updating its policies, declaring that trans women volition present beryllium searched by antheral officers (and vice versa), and Barclays banks stating that trans women volition nary longer beryllium allowed to usage pistillate toilets successful its buildings.

On Wednesday, the unfastened missive expressing solidarity with trans, non-binary, intersex, and sex non-conforming radical was published, calling for large bodies wrong the amusement sphere to support these communities.

“The Supreme Court’s ruling that, nether the Equality Act, ‘woman’ is defined by biologic sex, states that ‘the conception of enactment is binary, a idiosyncratic is either a pistillate oregon a man’,” the missive reads (as reported by Deadline).

“We judge the ruling undermines the lived world and threatens the information of trans, non-binary and intersex radical surviving successful the UK.”

Among those to person lent it their enactment are Bafta nominee Harris Dickinson, Bridgerton favourite Nicola Coughlan, The Last Of Us prima Bella Ramsey, Adolescence histrion Faye Marsay and Big Boys creator Jack Rooke.

But there’s 1 sanction attached to the missive that has raised eyebrows.

Paapa Essiedu, the histrion champion known for his supporting relation successful the deed play I May Destroy You, has besides co-signed the letter, conscionable weeks aft it was announced he’d beryllium starring successful the caller TV adaptation of the Harry Potter novels.

HuffPost UK has contacted Paapa Essiedu’s squad for comment.

Other figures from Rowling’s Wizarding World to person signed the missive see Fantastic Beasts prima Eddie Redmayne and Katie Leung, who played Cho Chang successful Harry Potter.

While Eddie spoke retired successful enactment of trans radical successful 2020, astatine a clip erstwhile Rowling’s views were archetypal becoming public, helium has besides defended the Harry Potter creator successful the past, claiming the “vitriol” she has received online is “equally disgusting” arsenic the maltreatment faced by trans people.

HBO – who is producing the caller Harry Potter bid – antecedently defended Rowling’s engagement arsenic an enforcement producer, with a spokesperson saying: “We are arrogant to erstwhile again archer the communicative of Harry Potter – the heartwarming books that talk to the powerfulness of friendship, resolve, and acceptance.

“JK Rowling has a close to explicit her idiosyncratic views. We volition stay focused connected the improvement of the caller series, which volition lone payment from her involvement.”