Harry Potter actor Ralph Fiennes has defended author JK Rowling in a new interview with the New York Times. Fiennes described the “verbal abuse directed at her” as “disgusting” and “appalling”. The actor says he can understand why some people may be angry about what Rowling says about women. However, he claims that it’s “not some obscene, uber-right-wing fascist. It’s just a woman saying, ‘I’m a woman’”. Fiennes claims to “understand” where the Harry Potter author is coming from even though he is not a woman. Rowling has received backlash about her opinions on transgender people after she called out the term “people who menstruate” in June 2020. The author denied claims that she is a trans-exclusionary radical feminist (TERF). In an essay, Rowling addressed the backlash and revealed that she was previously domestically abused and sexually assaulted. however, the essay resulted in more backlash against her.