This is how JK Rowling shut down a 'bunch of racists'

JK is awesome, again.

Harry Potter author JK Rowling has spoken out against the 'bunch of racists' who took exception to the casting of Noma Dumezweni as an adult Hermione Granger in the upcoming Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play. Whilst the majority of people were excited by the casting, some felt the need to use social media to complain about the decision, claiming that the casting of a black actress was inconsistent with the book and the films.

Speaking in The Observer, Rowling said: 'With my experience of social media, I thought that idiots were going to idiot. But what can you say? That’s the way the world is. Noma was chosen because she was the best actress for the job.'

Rowling goes on to speak openly about her opinion of people who were angered by the casting (who didn't seem to have an issue with casting a blonde guy as the famous redhead Ron Weasley.)

'I had a bunch of racists telling me that because Hermione ‘turned white’ – that is, lost colour 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.'

Rowling had previously taken to Twitter to comment on the situation, pointing out that the description of Hermione in the book stated she had brown hair and brown eyes. All of which is perfectly consistent with Noma Dumezweni.

John Tiffany, who was responsible for casting the play, also weighed in, saying: 'I am not as Twitter-familiar as Jo and Jack, so I hadn’t encountered its dark side, which is just awful. But what shocked me was the way people couldn’t visualise a non-white person as the hero of a story. It’s therefore brilliant that this has happened.'

We couldn't agree more.