&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Why did Black Mirror filmmaker Ally Pankiw turn down HBO's Harry Potter series? Details inside")
HBO's Harry Potter series is one of the highly anticipated shows. However, the show is now grabbing headlines for different reasons. Ally Pankiw, best known for Black Mirror and Feel Good, has reportedly revealed that she turned down an opportunity to direct the fantasy series, but she turned it down. But what led to her turning down the offer?
Why did Ally Pankiw turn down directing the Harry Potter series?
Ally Pankiw shared a screenshot of a text conversation with one of her representatives in which she
swiftly declined the opportunity to potentially join the wizarding world as a director, as per the Entertainment Weekly report.
She said via representatives, "I have an instinct on the answer, but I feel compelled to ask. Harry Potter? Hard no? Absolutely f*****g not! Lol. But, thank you for asking." The representative shot back, "Of course, I assumed as much (and agree). In the caption of the post, Pankiw wrote, “It simply is this easy to say no to funding transphobia! (Also this was for directing, not acting… obviously lol).”
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In the comments of Pankiw’s post, fellow director Kate Herron, who helmed numerous episodes of Loki and an episode of Doctor Who, said that she had a similar experience regarding the forthcoming Potter show. "Yeah, thank you exactly!” she wrote. “Respect and love to you, Ally. They’ve asked me twice, and I’ve had to explain my answer is never gonna change from a no.”
Reportedly, her comments connect her decision of not being involved in the Harry Potter show to the long-running controversy surrounding author JK Rowling, whose public statements about transgender people have drawn criticism from LFBTQ+ advocates and several figures in the entertainment industry.
Who is Ally Pankiw?
Ally Pankiw is best known for directing critically acclaimed TV episodes like the Joan is Awful episode of Black Mirror and the first season of Netflix's Feel Good and for writing on the hit comedy series Schitt's Creek. Ally has served as a story editor and writer on two seasons of Dan Levy's award-winning CBC series Schitt's Creek.
She also wrote and directed her feature film debut, the 2023 dramedy I Used to Be Funny starring Rachel Sennott. Ally got her start directing and producing prominent music videos and commercial content for major artists like Ariana Grande, Janelle Monae and MUNA.
