The BBC is making a JK Rowling documentary - without her

The BBC has announced a two-part series about Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling.

It's being widely reported that now-controversial author was not involved in the production.

According to the BBC, the docuseries will trace Rowling's “dramatic rise, cultural influence and contested legacy, using her life as a lens through which to explore three decades of profound social, political and technological change.” 

Rowling wrote the early books in the seven-part Harry Potter series as an impoverished single mother, by her own admission. The first story was published in 1997, and would change her life as it became part of one of the most successful book series ever.

Theme parks, films, TV series, video games and a merchandising empire soon followed, launching her into multi-million dollar/billionaire status.

JK Rowling controversies

In recent years, Rowling has been very active on X, with strong conservative opinions on politics and social issues and no apologies for them.

Many of her posts have gone viral as they've sparked hot debates.

The documentary acknowledges that she's now “one of Britain’s most polarizing public figures,” and promises not to shy away from the controversies.

The BBC description adds about her, “Admired by supporters as a fearless defender of women’s rights and condemned by critics who call her an opponent of trans equality, she finds herself divided from some of the actors and fans who once championed her work."

While Rowling did not directly participate, the BBC has used archive material, her writing and interviews with some of those who have worked with her.

“Thirty years after the publication of the first ‘Harry Potter’ book, there feels like no better time for the BBC to explore one of the towering figures of British literature,” said Simon Young, BBC history’s head of commissioning. 

“No cultural history of Britain in the 21st century would be complete without the story of the boy wizard that J.K. Rowling created, the publishing and film-making phenomenon that she spawned, or the polarizing public figure she has become.”

It remains to be seen just how far the BBC goes in examining Rowling's wild success and moments of viral cancellations/downfalls that followed.