Director Ally Pankiw publicly declines HBO Harry Potter gig, citing Rowling stance

Black Mirror director Ally Pankiw posted an Instagram screenshot on 13 August 2026 showing her agent's message "Harry Potter? Hard no?" and her reply: "Absolutely fucking not!" She captioned it: "It is simply this easy to say no to funding transphobia." Director Kate Herron commented she had refused the same series twice. Deadline reports HBO has not confirmed Pankiw was on its director list.