Keira Knightley laughs at the idea of boycotting JKR

I would expect her to do exactly what she did. Dismiss it with a sharp 'sorry' for the nonsense that it is and then tell people they should be kinder, as feminists are always told we should be.

OK, so what would you expect her to do with that knowledge assuming she was aware of it?

Sorry, you think that agreeing to work on the Harry Potter audio book despite some people being upset that JK Rowling doesn't believe humans can change sex is like agreeing to work with a known sex offender?

How is that in any way equivalent?

Apart from anything else, pretty much everyone continued to turn a blind eye to Weinstein's crimes until he was actually arrested, despite the fact that being a rapist is clearly far worse than being a - checks notes - feminist.

Yes, her sorry it's a very firm one, leaving her opinion hanging in the air rather uncomfortably I would think for the interviewer.

She’s definitely aware. She’s struggling to take the interviewer seriously. It’s not the words she uses but her tone and body language especially when she looks away.

But she's not a normal person. She's an actress so I would have expected her to know about what goes on in the acting world. I would see it as having signed up to work with Weinstein and having no idea about any controversy surrounding him.
But maybe you're right. Maybe she doesn't read the news and lives in a bubble.
At the very least though, I would have assumed her agent would have told her

Ha I read a couple of headlines and was thinking badly of KN for apologising, thinking it would be nice if she had more backbone than that!
Glad I watched the clip now, it’s definitely a “sorry I don’t really care what some deranged idiots think”
She obviously knows about the “controversy” around JKR unless she’s been living in a cave so I think she meant she didn’t specifically know about a boycott and she doesn’t care anyway!
KN a secret TERF? 😆

Most normal people don’t know about it, unless they’re interested in this type of thing. I don’t think celebrities who aren’t in touch with reality would know

Maybe she was unaware. But I find that hard to believe. Unless she's been living under a rock for the past few years, surely she would know the controversy around JKR and all the disputes with former Harry Potter stars

I've watched the clip a few times.
What it says to me is 'i wasn't aware of that, I'm verrrry sorry (ha, of course I'm not, don't be ridiculous!) it looks like she's barely managing to keep a straight face and not eyeroll at just how pathetic it all is.

My interpretation is that it was entirely neutral as a response. She apologised to the interviewer for not being aware and laughed awkwardly because she had been put on the spot about a very controversial topic.

My interpretation is that she apologised (half heartedly) for not having been aware of the supposed controversy among fans.

I don't think the 'apology' had anything to do with JKR's opinions.
ETA, not that it's possible to apologise for someone else's opinions anyway!

Keira has failed in her allyship to trans people

Tut tut, Keira, off to the gulag with you.

Is this the Metro “newspaper” given out free at stations that by 9am is trodden all over the floor of every tube?

I’ve always liked the cut of her jib.

Skimmed the article. What a load of mawkish crap. Is this person really making a living as a journalist?

On David Tennant: I adored his Casanova, his Crowley, his absolutely astonishingly brilliant readings of the How To Train Your Dragon books (my very late teen DC still listen to them, they're that good).

And now the sight of his face and the sound of his voice make my skin crawl. Like Izzard. Misogynists give me the terminal ick.

Oooh I want to know too.
I always enjoyed watching his TV dramas but since he lost the plot and went all 'protect the dolls' and so on, I can't even bear to see his face (that goes for many other actors I used to enjoy before they became TRA)

The eternal problem for the TRAs is this will be a massive success. They will try to start boycotts and it will do nothing, they are in the major minority on this issue, they just shout louder but with little effect.

This is my position. I have found her to be very wooden as an actor, (don’t know anything about her writing), but thought she was very sensible in that.
I’m impressed!

I saw this is the Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/oct/15/harry-potter-pothole-repairs-divides-opinion-in-devon-village

TRAs head will explode when they see it because it is an article about the new Harry Potter that doesn't slip in even one reference to JKR's 'controversial' views.

I'm amazed they can't see the futility of a boycott. She is more popular than ever. The new HP series will be huge. Tha latest Cormorant Strike book got great reviews. There is a new Hogwarts Legacy game on the horizon, as well as a Christmas Pig movie.

Tantrumming about an actress taking part in the audiobook of a hugely popular series just makes them look ridiculous. People are sick of this shit.

"The fall of David Tenant"? What have I missed?

Love it. I think when she bursts out laughing it's because she knows she just did an arsey sarcastic British "sorry", but also because the idea that she should apologise for taking a job connected to JKR is so lame. She's not laughing at the issue itself but at the stupid question. How many brilliant celebs not to mention countless other hardworking staff have worked on JKR-authored projects - it's going to be many thousands. She did well not to say "oh fuck off".

But I also get the feeling there's an element of eye-rolling and she is aware of the issues - though possibly not that specific boycott. Her face is saying "Really, you really want to push me on this? I'm not playing."

Just really, really hope she sticks to her guns because she will be put under a lot of pressure and some of it will be vicious threats and the like.

That's very much not an apology. Damn, I can't stand Keira Knightley and now I have to like her. Urrrrrrh😡

Edited because I don't like her so much I can't spell her name. 😡

Celebrities can see which way the tide is turning, especially in Britain. I imagine the fall of David Tennant rattled a few cages, and Emma Watson a few more. I'm not saying Keira has changed her opinion - she may have thought it was ridiculous all along - but it's a sign of the times that she doesn't feel the need to grovel. The trans movement hadn't caught up to this change in the zeitgeist yet. They think that she must be apologising, because that's what everyone does, isn't it? It's the default. You grovel at the altar of trans and pray for forgiveness.

We're at the stage where that old public shaming tactic is no longer effective. It's acceptable now to just feign polite befuddlement and move the conversation on.

It's what the approach should have been all along, to be honest.