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\n\t\tKeira Knightley will join the Audible book series as the\u00a0voice of the universally despised Professor Umbridge (Picture: Arnold Jerocki\/GC Images)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tKeira Knightley will join the Audible book series as the\u00a0voice of the universally despised Professor Umbridge (Picture: Arnold Jerocki\/GC Images)<\/p>\n
The latest Harry Potter<\/a> adaptation casting is perhaps the most soul-crushing of all \u2014 and it\u2019s not something I can magically brush aside.<\/p>\n It\u2019s been confirmed that Keira Knightley<\/a> will join the Audible book series as the\u00a0voice of the universally despised Professor Umbridge<\/a>\u00a0when the wizarding franchise is adapted into a seven-part audiobook series.<\/p>\n The ensemble comprises more than 200 actors, some of whom are among the most esteemed in the business, from Hugh Laurie<\/a> to Matthew Macfadyen<\/a>.<\/p>\n In the latest casting announcement, Knightley\u2019s name sits alongside Game of Thrones icon Kit Harington<\/a>, Luther villainess Ruth Wilson<\/a>, and One Day\u2019s leading lady Ambika Mod, all of whose work I am a huge fan of.<\/p>\n However, when I read the Love Actually actress\u2019 name on the list, it was a particularly sharp knife through the heart. I immediately began to grieve the love I have felt for someone with strong ties to the LGBTQ+<\/a> community.<\/p>\n \t\t By signing up for the project, with the first book to be released in November, I believe Knightley has sadly proven that even the stars who appear to have the most unwavering morals and unshakeable voices of allyship can be bought out \u2013 and it\u2019s trans people who have the most to lose.\u00a0<\/p>\n In recent years, Harry Potter author JK Rowling<\/a> has made no secret<\/a> of her feelings towards the trans community, claiming \u2013 among other things \u2013 that there \u2018are no trans kids\u2019 and that no child is \u2018born in the wrong body\u2019. In my view, these are cruel comments in line with an archaic interpretation of womanhood.<\/p>\n To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web \t\t\t\tJoin Metro’s LGBTQ+ community on WhatsApp\t\t\t<\/p>\n With thousands of members from all over the world, our vibrant LGBTQ+ WhatsApp channel<\/a> is a hub for all the latest news and important issues that face the LGBTQ+ community.<\/p>\n Simply\u00a0click on this link<\/a>, select \u2018Join Chat\u2019 and you\u2019re in! Don’t forget to turn on notifications!<\/p>\n Consequently, those signing on to work in projects that will further line her pockets have sparked outrage, alienating their once fiercely loyal fanbases for seemingly selling out the trans community.<\/p>\n So\u00a0I can no longer support Knightley. Being a queer woman, a trans ally, and a Keira Knightley fan are \u2013 to my grave disappointment \u2013 now\u00a0mutually exclusive.<\/p>\n Ever since I was a little girl, I have found solace in her work. I didn\u2019t always understand why, though.<\/p>\n When I first watched Bend It Like Beckham<\/a> in the early 2000s as a child, I had neither the vocabulary nor the awareness to articulate why the character of Jules Paxton made me feel seen or why her \u2018friendship\u2019 with Jess made my tummy flutter.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tRead more about Harry Potter\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t Fast forward a few years, grant me access to the internet, and open my eyes to the mere existence of homosexuality beyond Bible classes, and the fog was lifted. It dawned on me that my infatuation with the fictional footballer was due to the deep-set queer subtext of the character and her inherently lesbian traits.<\/p>\n I gradually came to realise that I felt things when Jules and Jess locked eyes across the pitch because they were speaking to me on an emotional level. From there, I was fully aboard the Keira Knightley train and became mesmerised by anything I saw her in, whether it be a romantic comedy<\/a> or the British period dramas she\u2019s grown synonymous with<\/a>.<\/p>\n Her character in Pirates of the Caribbean oozed both beauty and power. Her later portrayal of Joan Clarke in 2014\u2019s The Imitation Game as a companion and confidante to Alan Turing (a mathematical genius who was prosecuted for homosexual acts) was tear-jerking, to say the least.<\/p>\n To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web Then, in 2018, she took the helm in Colette<\/a>, a biographical drama based on the life of the French writer. Known mononymously, Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette was also bisexual, which she explored on the page in rule-breaking artistry.<\/p>\n At the time of the film\u2019s release, Knightley never shied away from questions on queer topics, whether it be working with gay directors or expressing how she wanted the movie to open doors for other marginalised communities to raise their voices.<\/p>\n She even recalled going to prom with a female friend, who was gay, as a teen, and her outrage when they kissed on the night<\/a>, only to find their photo wasn\u2019t displayed on the wall as the others were.<\/p>\n \u2018I thought it was bulls**t at the time,\u2019 she previously declared to Pride<\/a> Source after their snap was not considered \u2018appropriate\u2019.<\/p>\n \t\t She added: \u2018I just remember thinking that was stupid, and I think I\u2019ve thought that \u2014 always along the line \u2014 any discrimination against people because of their sexuality has been utterly ridiculous.\u2019<\/p>\n Colette marked a real turning point in Knightley\u2019s career for me and, I imagine, her other queer fans. She was no longer playing roles with an underlying \u2018is she or isn\u2019t she?\u2019 tone.<\/p>\n She had become intentional and explicit in her actions, and it was refreshing to have someone of her stature in our corner on the press scene, actively calling out for more LGBTQ+ stories to be heard.<\/p>\n When she was asked about the possibility of increasing her queer fanbase at the time, she said she was \u2018thrilled, so thrilled!\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t So, what\u2019s changed? <\/p>\n At what point did this self-professed RuPaul\u2019s Drag Race fanatic, who has openly backed a lesbian sequel to Bend It Like Beckham, decide to cast not only her gay fans aside, but our siblings in the community whose rights are under attack more so now than ever?<\/p>\n Keira \u2018I\u2019ve always had family with many gay friends, and people in the LGBTQ+ community have always been around me all my life\u2019 Knightley, your words are no longer compatible with your behaviour, and if you assume that your queer fans will still back you by sweeping the whole Harry Potter thing under the carpet, you are mistaken.<\/p>\n To be revered and cherished by a queer fanbase is a privilege, and the biggest way to test the solidity of that support is by blindly assuming it is unconditional.<\/p>\n It is not, nor can it be in the current political and social climate.\u00a0<\/p>\n The LGBTQ+ community has undoubtedly helped to elevate Knightley to national treasure status. It\u2019s painful to discover that while she has been happy to take our money, even she has a price. <\/p>\n What she\u2019s being paid for the new Harry Potter role, I couldn\u2019t say. <\/p>\n Clearly, if the cheque is fat enough, that once booming, unflinching voice of solidarity can be easily silenced.<\/p>\n Do you have a story you\u2019d like to share? Get in touch by emailing jess.austin@metro.co.uk<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Share your views in the comments below.<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"epa12274231](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SEI_260695733-bf3b.jpg\")
\n\t\tHarry Potter author JK Rowling has made no secret of her feelings towards the trans community (Picture: EPA)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tI felt things when Jules and Jess locked eyes across the pitch (Picture: Alamy Stock Photo)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tIt was refreshing to have someone of her stature in our corner on the press scene, actively calling out for more LGBTQ+ stories to be heard (Picture: Victor Boyko\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SEI_263389678-7796.jpg\")
\n\t\tTo be revered and cherished by a queer fanbase is a privilege (Picture: Parisa Taghizadeh\/Netflix)<\/p>\n
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