David Tennant addressed his views on transgender rights and J.K. Rowling during an appearance on ITV1’s The Assembly, where he responded to questions from a group of autistic, neurodivergent, and learning-disabled participants. Tennant expressed support for the transgender community while stating he bears no personal hostility toward Rowling.
“J.K. Rowling is a wonderful author who’s created brilliant stories, and I wish her no ill will,” Tennant said. “But I hope that we can all as a society just let people be. Just get out of people’s way.”
Rowling has publicly supported the Supreme Court ruling affirming that the term “woman” under the Equality Act refers to biological sex. She also reportedly donated £70,000 to Women Scotland, the group that brought the case forward.
During the interview, Tennant recalled the impact of Section 28, a law introduced in 1988 that prohibited local authorities in the United Kingdom from promoting homosexuality. He described it as damaging to LGBT+ rights and education. “We look back on that now as a medieval, absurd thing to try and say. And I think the way the trans community is being demonized and othered is exactly the same. It’s become this kind of political football,” Tennant said. Section 28 was repealed in 2003.
Tennant made additional comments about Kemi Badenoch, who previously argued for protections on single-sex spaces, saying during an awards ceremony that Badenoch should “shut up.” After Badenoch was elected leader of the Conservative Party, Rowling commented on social media that her “thoughts and prayers” were with Tennant.
When asked about potential involvement in the upcoming Harry Potter television series being developed by Warner Bros., Tennant responded that he felt his contribution to the franchise had “probably been made,” adding, “I’m told there’s an executive producer who doesn’t love me on that show,” a comment interpreted as referring to Rowling.
Rowling has previously criticized other actors from the Harry Potter films, including Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint, for their public support of transgender rights.
Pedro Pascal, known for The Last of Us, recently criticized Rowling following her reaction to the Supreme Court ruling, using social media to comment on her public remarks.
During the same episode of The Assembly, Tennant discussed his experiences filming Doctor Who and shared that he had his wife’s initials tattooed on his wrist as a gift for her birthday. Tennant’s episode is scheduled to air on ITV1 at 10 p.m. on Sunday, April 27.
