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\t\t<\/p>\n John Lithgow<\/strong><\/a> is opening up about backlash.<\/p>\n The 79-year-old actor spoke to The Times<\/a><\/em> on Sunday (April 27), addressing the response he\u2019s received for joining HBO<\/strong><\/a>\u2018s upcoming Harry Potter<\/em><\/strong><\/a> series amid J.K. Rowling<\/strong><\/a>\u2018s anti-trans crusade.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, it was a big decision because it\u2019s probably the last major role I\u2019ll play,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an eight-year commitment so I was just thinking about mortality and that this is a very good winding-down role,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n Keep reading to find out more\u2026<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n John <\/strong>is set to play Professor Albus Dumbledore, and said he \u201cabsolutely\u201d didn\u2019t expect to get so much criticism for taking on the role.<\/p>\n However, before he took on the role, he received a letter from \u201ca very good friend who is the mother of a trans child,\u201d titled \u201cAn Open Letter to John Lithgow<\/strong>: Please Walk Away from Harry Potter<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat was the canary in the coal mine,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought, \u2018Why is this a factor at all?\u2019 I wonder how J.K. Rowling <\/strong>has absorbed it. I suppose at a certain point I\u2019ll meet her, and I\u2019m curious to talk to her.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked if the backlash has made him reconsider joining the cast, he said: \u201cOh, heavens no.\u201d<\/p>\n The author has tirelessly worked against the trans community<\/a> for years. Most recently, J.K.<\/strong> celebrated the U.K.\u2019s Supreme Court ruling that trans women should not be recognized as women under the Equality Act.<\/p>\n