Helena Bonham Carter, 56, who famously played Bellatrix Lestrange in JK Rowling’s Harry Potter franchise, the author has defended, saying she feels JK has been “hunted down”.
JK has come under fire from LGBT+ activists in recent years, with some accusing her of being transphobic, which she denies.
In a new interview, Helena described the treatment as “appalling” and “a bunch of b*****ks”.
She continued: “I think she’s been hunted. It’s been pushed to the limit, the judgment of men.
“She’s allowed to speak her mind, especially if she’s been abused. Everyone carries their own trauma history and forms their opinions from that trauma and you have to respect where people come from and their pain.
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“You don’t have to all agree on everything that would be insane and boring. She doesn’t mean it aggressively; she’s just saying something from her own experience.”
Helena also added to The Sunday Times that she believes if JK hadn’t been “the most phenomenal success” the reaction wouldn’t have been so strong.
She concluded: “So I think there is unfortunately a lot of envy and the need to take down people who are causing a lot of these cancellations. And glee.”
The Crown star also proclaimed that she “hates cancellation culture” and sees it as a “kind of witch hunt” and “lack of understanding”.
“It’s just a woman saying, ‘I’m a woman and I feel I’m a woman and I want to be able to say I’m a woman.’ And I understand where she’s coming from, even though I’m not a woman.”
JK has been abused on social media since 2020, when she took aim at an article referring to “people who menstruate”.
The backlash against her was huge and she subsequently responded with messages of support for transgender people.
She tweeted: “If sex isn’t real, there’s no same-sex attraction. When sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women worldwide is erased.
“I know and love transgender people, but erasing the concept of sex deprives many of the ability to talk about their lives in a meaningful way. It is not hate to speak the truth.
“I respect every trans person’s right to live in a way that feels authentic and comfortable to them.”
She also wrote an essay saying she was a “domestic violence and sexual assault survivor”.
She explained that she was speaking out in “solidarity with the vast numbers of women who have histories like mine, who have been labeled bigots for being concerned about single-sex spaces”.
