Tom Felton praises JK Rowling for ‘bringing generations together’ via the Harry Potter franchise

He rose to fame during his role as Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter movie franchise.

And Tom Felton has praised author of the original books JK Rowling for ‘bringing so many generatons together’ through the stories.

His comments come following a wave of backlash towards the writer following her controversial comments on transgender people – with the 35-year-old actor sharing that he ‘doesn’t pick sides’.

Chatting in a new interview with The Times T2 magazine, Tom drew on JK, real name moniker Joanne, and her mark on the entertainment industry. 

He said: ‘I couldn’t speak for what others have said or what she said, to be completely honest, but I’m often reminded, attending Comic Cons [fantasy conventions] in particular, that no one has single-handedly done more for bringing joy to so many different generations and walks of life.

‘I’m constantly reminded of her positive work in that field and as a person. I’ve only had a handful of meetings with her but she has always been lovely. So I’m very grateful for that,’ he explained.

His comments come after J.K. Rowling came under fire in early June 2020 for controversial tweets she posted about the transgender community.

Referring to an article that referenced ‘people who menstruate’, the auther tweeted: ‘I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?’

And following this, which caused up an initial stir, she continued to express controversial views on sex and gender in further tweets.

The stance even sparked major Harry Potter stars such as Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe to speak out against her views. 

But keeping more to the fence as he refused to express his opinion on the matter, Tom explained: ‘I don’t tend to pick sides. 

‘I won’t talk specifics but I enjoy reminding myself and others that a lot of my good friends have ways of life or personal decisions that I don’t necessarily agree with. We should enjoy celebrating each other’s differences.’

The actor recently reunited with his on-screen Harry Potter father Jason Isaacs, as he came to see Tom at his West End show 2.22 Ghost Story.

They played the incredible dark father-son duo Lucius and Draco in the franchise, and sent fans wild as they shared a snap of the reunion.

Emma Watson weighed in on the ‘transphobia’ row sparked by J.K. Rowling hours after the best-selling author penned an essay defending her stance.

The actress, 30, who became famous as a child for playing Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films based on Rowling’s book series, took to Twitter to share her thoughts.

Emma’s comments came just hours after the acclaimed novelist penned a deeply personal essay to address the controversy, revealing she was sexually assaulted in her 20s and saying she still feels the scars of ‘domestic violence’ in her first marriage.

The screen star wrote: ‘Trans people are who they say they are and deserve to live their lives without being constantly questioned or told they aren’t who they say they are.

‘I want my trans followers to know that I and so many other people around the world see you, respect you and love you for who you are.’ 

She went on to say that she was proud to donate to charities such as Mermaids and Mama Cash before encouraging her fans to do the same.

Emma concluded: ‘Happy #Pride2020 Sending love x.’ 

Daniel Radcliffe also felt compelled to make a statement about the acclaimed novelist, after she tweeted about an article entitled ‘Creating a more equal post COVID-19 world for people who menstruate’ on Friday.

Rowling wrote: ”People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?’ 

In response, Radcliffe hit out at the author who made him famous, saying: ‘To all the people who now feel that their experience of the books has been tarnished or diminished, I am deeply sorry for the pain these comments have caused you’. 

Radcliffe wrote: ‘Transgender women are women. Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo or I’. 

He continued: ‘I realize that certain press outlets will probably want to paint this as in-fighting between JK Rowling and myself, but that is really not what this is about, nor is it what’s important right now. 

‘While Jo is unquestionably responsible for the course my life has taken, as someone who has been honored to work with and continues to contribute to The Trevor Project for the last decade, and just as a human being, I feel compelled to say something at this moment.’

Radcliffe also reached out to loyal Harry Potter fans: ‘If these books taught you that love is the strongest force in the universe, capable of overcoming anything…

‘If they taught you that strength is found in diversity, and that dogmatic ideas of pureness lead to the oppression of vulnerable groups…

‘If you believe that a particular character is trans, nonbinary, or gender fluid, or that they are gay or bisexual; if you found anything in these stories that resonated with you and helped you at any time in your life — then that is between you and the book that you read, and it is sacred. 

‘And in my opinion nobody can touch that. It means to you what it means to you and I hope that these comments will not taint that too much.’ 

In December, Rowling discussed the trans community, in a move which earned her the label of trans-exclusionary radical feminist (TERF).

Her most recent comments were met with backlash from many fans and followers, as well as some notable names like Jameela Jamil, Sarah Paulson, Jonathan Van Ness and more.

Jameela Jamil challenged her to put her money where her mouth is, tweeting her a GoFundMe link for homeless Black trans women in Atlanta.

She wrote: ‘Hey JK as you claim to support trans rights and this is a historical moment where we are globally discussing the impact of white supremacy on Black People, please share some of your $650million mega wealth with this charity.’

Sarah Paulson wrote, ‘Word. Goodnight and shut up @jk_rowling’ while retweeting creative producer Ben O’Keefe.

He wrote: ‘This woman is complete scum. Shut the f*** up you transphobic f***. You don’t know or love any trans people if you won’t even acknowledge their existence…

‘Thanks for ruining the books of my childhood. Just stop talking. We know you’re a TERF. You don’t need to keep doing this.’

This is not the first time she has come under fire over the topic, liking a 2018 tweet that referred to transgender women as ‘men in dresses.’ 

At the time, a spokesperson told The Sun that Rowling’s like was a ‘clumsy and middle-aged moment.’

She previously confirmed suspicions of her transphobic views back in December, while showing support for Maya Forstater, who lost a court case against her former employers after they fired her over transphobic comments.

Rowling tweeted: ‘Dress however you please. Call yourself whatever you like. Sleep with any consenting adult who’ll have you…

‘Live your best life in peace and security. But force women out of their jobs for stating that sex is real? #IStandWithMaya #ThisIsNotADrill’.

Elsewhere, Jonathan Ross backtracked on his comments about J.K. Rowling, after he defended the Harry Potter novelist’s remarks about transgender people.

The chat show host, 59, took to Twitter on Monday evening to admit that his 23-year-old daughter Honey had helped him see things from a different view.

This comes after Honey slammed Rowling for her comments about the use of the word woman, despite her famous father defending the author.

It comes after JK Rowling’s public feud with Nicola Sturgeon over trans rights escalated today as the Harry Potter author sarcastically branded the SNP leader the ‘First Feminist’ – as it emerged that the party’s equalities officer threatened to ‘beat the f*** out of terfs’.

In a string of now deleted vile tweets, Cameron Downing, 23, threatened violence against women and using the derogatory term Terf [trans-exclusionary radical feminist] declared: ‘I f****** hate terfs and transphobes with such a passion they make me want to SCREAM!’

Aspiring actor Mr Downing has been an equalities officer for the SNP’s London branch since August and previously worked in the same role last year. He also worked as a contact tracer at NHS Lothian. 

When confronted about the Twitter posts, he said: ‘I apologise for these tweets and for any offence caused to the LGBTQ+ community and have long since deleted them.’

The outburst has sparked a public backlash, with Scottish Conservative MSP Rachael Hamilton thundering: ‘This is abhorrent language for someone in such a position to be using in relation to this debate. Given the sensitive nature of the subject, there is an onus on everyone involved to discuss it in a respectful and civilised way – not least an equalities officer for the SNP.’

Pressure group For Women Scotland added: ‘The SNP seem to actively want mindless thugs in their ranks – as long as it is only women they want to hurt.’  

Miss Rowling, 57, who has faced death threats from trans activists, waded into the row today and chose to resume her ongoing war of words with Miss Sturgeon by sharing the story on Twitter and writing: ‘Nicola Sturgeon’s Scotland: A place where an equalities officer feels free to declare in public how much he wants to beat up non-compliant women.’

Responding to another tweet about Miss Sturgeon’s next move, the Harry Potter author sarcastically said: Oh, I’m sure the First Feminist will be all over it, what with her sterling record of taking women’s concerns seriously and loudly condemning rape and death threats to members of her own party.’