Some of the cast of the the upcoming “Harry Potter” play — which will depict Harry's life 19 years after the end of the last book (and the life of his son, Albus) — has been announced, and not everyone is happy.
Not because the actor who will play Ron Weasley, Paul Thornley, isn't ginger, but because the actor who will play Hermione, Noma Dumezweni, is black. Because Hermione was played by a white person in the movies (and depicted as white on a few of the book covers), some people can't handle the thought of her being portrayed by a black person.
But J.K. Rowling herself has now weighed in, saying she never explictly wrote Hermione as any race:
Canon: brown eyes, frizzy hair and very clever. White skin was never specified. Rowling loves black Hermione ???? https://t.co/5fKX4InjTH
– J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) December 21, 2015
And Matthew Lewis, who played Neville Longbottom in the movies, points out that he doesn't look like his book counterpart and that all seemed to work out just fine:
And Neville Longbottom was blonde. I really don't care. Good luck to her. https://t.co/0JNjK3Pe0V
– Matthew Lewis (@Mattdavelewis) December 21, 2015
Dumezweni has won an Olivier Award for her theatre work, but American audiences probably best know her as Captain Magambo in two episodes of “Doctor Who.”
“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is set to open in London in July 2016.