FANTASYLAND

Pranksters Trick J.K. Rowling Into Fake Zelensky Meeting

The pranksters made sure to joke about Rowling’s transphobia in the process.

Sometimes, people get duped. Usually, though, it’s not someone with the status of J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series. Thinking she was chatting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Rowling eagerly participated in a Zoom meeting recently, which lasted for 12 minutes. But she was actually talking to Russian prankster duo Vovan and Lexus, notoriously known for prank-calling celebrities. The faceless interviewer asked Rowling to change Harry Potter’s scar as it resembled Russia’s pro-war “Z” symbol, to which she replied, “I will look into that, might be good for me to do something with that myself on social media because I think that will get into the newspapers.” They kept trolling, asking whether Dumbledore was gay and saying he hopefully hadn’t slept “with a transgender,” in reference to her transphobia scandal. Rowling’s spokesperson called the video a “distorted representation” of the a talk she gave about her charitable work in Ukraine.