JK Rowlings, who is responsible for bringing Harry Potter to the world, has blasted those who are upset with the casting of the upcoming play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. The production made news earlier this year for casting a Black actress, Noma Dumezweni, in the role of Harry's best friend, Hermione.
Apparently, though, not everyone is happy about Hermione being Black.

The author told The Guardian, “With my experience of social media, I thought that idiots were going to idiot,” she said in reference to those who expressed their anger over the casting choice. "I had a bunch of racists telling me that because Hermione ‘turned white’ — that is, lost color from her face after a shock — that she must be a white woman, which I have a great deal of difficulty with. But I decided not to get too agitated about it and simply state quite firmly that Hermione can be a Black woman with my absolute blessing and enthusiasm.”

The outpouring of negative reactions to the casting announcement was staggering, but sadly not surprising.

Rowling, herself, clarified that Hermione was never explicitly described as white, but said that, in the first book, she had written Granger as a girl with brown eyes and frizzy hair. 

Regardless of the controversy, the two-part show will premier on July 30 in London's West End. Not much is known about the plot of the show, but it is said to follow the final book of the series.