Keira Knightley’s Awkward Laugh at J.K. Rowling Question Sparks Backlash

Actor Keira Knightley, not one to usually find herself caught up in controversy, found herself smack dab in the middle of one after a response she gave during an October 2025 Decider interview. The interview, which focused on her role in the Netflix film The Woman in Cabin 10, took a sharp turn left when the topic shifted to the new audio adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books, where Keira is slated to voice Dolores Umbridge.

She was asked if she knew, upon taking the role, that some fans are calling for a boycott of Harry Potter projects given Rowling’s controversial stance on transgender rights. And it was her response that threw people for a loop. Here’s what Keira said and why people have a problem with it.

In her October 2025 Decider interview, the topic of Keira Knightley voicing Dolores Umbridge in the new Harry Potter audiobooks came up, and that’s when things took a weird turn. The interviewer asked, “Are you aware that some fans are calling for a boycott given J.K. Rowling's ongoing campaign against trans people?”

And here is Keira’s unexpected response: “I was not aware of that, no. I’m very sorry.” But it’s the laugh that follows her response that has folks wondering if she was being serious or sarcastic. Many also questioned how Keira could not know that people are trying to cancel J.K. Rowling and her Harry Potter ventures.

Her response didn’t end there. Keira continued, “I think we’re all living in a period of time right now where we’re all going to have to figure out how to live together, aren’t we? And we’ve all got very different opinions, so I hope that we can all find respect.” Still, it’s not quite clear what Keira was implying. Was she referring to Rowling learning how to live among trans people, or did she mean that everyone with differing opinions needs to learn how to coexist?

Naturally, folks weren’t happy with Keira’s response. One person wrote in the comments of the Decider clip shared to the outlet’s Instagram, “Jeez, that response is horrific,” while another wrote, “Yikes. Didn’t expect that from her.” Someone else called out her attitude, writing, “Wow, the attitude she’s answering this question with is actually awful.” And of course, another had to draw attention to her lack of awareness: “So her agent or friends and family never discussed this with her?”

Overall, people weren’t pleased with the way Keira answered the Rowling question and especially didn’t like the short laugh she threw in there. Some also don’t believe she was being honest, with one person commenting, “She could just be honest and say with her full chest, ‘Yes, I am aware, but I am willing to do the work anyway.’ Absolutely no one believes she didn’t know.”

Mixed in with the critical comments were a few that sided with Keira. One user shared, “I think that was a perfect response. Cancel culture is wild."

For context, Rowling seems to believe that trans women are not women and that trans rights somehow take away from women's rights. She’s been labeled as “anti-trans,” and anyone who agrees to work with her or support her projects is often viewed as sharing those same beliefs.

In Keira’s case, it seems she’s looking at the whole situation as a business move. As the saying goes, you can’t mix business with pleasure, or in this case, business with personal preference. If every actor turned down jobs because they didn’t share the same political, religious, or personal beliefs as their co-stars or production teams, there would probably be no movies or TV shows.