“Not Attuned”? Tom Felton’s Red Carpet Cop-Out Is Part of the Problem
by Chris Peterson
Tom Felton walked the red carpet at the Tonys last night to promote his upcoming appearance as Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on Broadway in the fall. Charming, polished, and unmistakably Draco. And when Vareity asked the most predictable question of the evening — whether J.K. Rowling’s ongoing transphobia has impacted his return to the world of Harry Potter — he gave the kind of answer that makes you wince before the sentence even ends.
“No, I can’t say it does. I’m not really that attuned to it.”
And there it is. The shrug. The privileged pass. The “I don’t really follow politics” of red carpet answers.
Let me be very clear. Saying you’re “not attuned” to the public harm being caused to an already vulnerable community, especially by the very person who built the franchise you're profiting from, is not neutral. It’s not polite. It’s not keeping the peace. It’s choosing not to see pain. It’s tuning out on purpose. It’s privilege at full volume.
Felton’s latest stance echoes past neutrality he’s expressed, notably in 2022, when he told The Times he didn’t pay close attention to Rowling’s public views but remained incredibly thankful for her role in the saga.
And I get it. Tom Felton owes his career to the wizarding world. He, like so many of us, grew up in the shadow of Hogwarts. But that doesn’t mean he gets to skip the moral reckoning. The rest of us have had to figure out how to hold complicated feelings about the woman who created something we loved while watching her repeatedly platform harmful and hateful views. Fans have had to work overtime to separate the art from the artist. The least someone profiting off Cursed Child can do is listen.
Because when you say “I’m not attuned,” you’re also saying: I haven’t bothered to care. I haven’t read what she’s said. I haven’t paid attention to the trans people who have screamed that her words are causing real damage.
It’s not that Felton needed to give a fiery rebuke. He didn’t have to deliver a viral takedown. But he could’ve said, “I support the trans community.” He could’ve said, “I’m grateful to the fans who are navigating complicated feelings right now.” He could’ve said anything that acknowledged the hurt. Instead, he chose a soundbite soaked in indifference.
Compare that to Daniel Radcliffe, who has gone out of his way multiple times to affirm that trans women are women. Or to Emma Watson, who called for compassion and respect. Or Rupert Grint, who plainly said, “Trans women are women. Trans men are men.” That’s not hard. That’s not radical. That’s human.
Felton’s answer? It was a missed opportunity dressed up as diplomacy.
And the response online was swift. PinkNews called it atrocious. Fans called it clueless. And a few called it exactly what it was. The safest choice for the safest seat in the house. The one where your identity is never up for debate.
But here’s the thing. You don’t get to celebrate how Potter “brought the world together” while ignoring the way its creator is tearing parts of it apart. You don’t get to lean on nostalgia while others are fighting for their right to exist. You can’t talk about unity and then cover your ears when people are crying out for help.
What Felton did wasn’t hate speech. It wasn’t an endorsement. It was something worse. It was comfortable apathy. And when you’re standing on a red carpet at a celebration of art, storytelling, and inclusion, comfortable apathy is not good enough.