J.K. Rowling's Johnny Depp response raises more questions than it answers

J.K. Rowling, who has been criticized for her silence regarding Johnny Depp's continued involvement with the Fantastic Beasts film franchise, posted a statement to her personal website on Thursday that offers little explanation – just in more words than a tweet.

Rowling said her instinct was to be excited about Depp's casting, that she and many others involved in the films had reservations when he was first cast, and that she ultimately feels it was the right decision for the franchise.

Despite her silence on Twitter and refusal to engage with critical fans about the casting, Rowling suggests that she's been privy to the backlash that surfaced when Depp was first cast as the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald and while he's become a regular in the series.

"Harry Potter fans had legitimate questions and concerns about our choice to continue with Johnny Depp in the role," Rowling wrote in a carefully worded post on her site. "As David Yates, long-time Potter director, has already said, we naturally considered the possibility of recasting. I understand why some have been confused and angry about why that didn’t happen."

"For me personally, the inability to speak openly to fans about this issue has been difficult, frustrating and at times painful," she added. "However, the agreements that have been put in place to protect the privacy of two people, both of whom have expressed a desire to get on with their lives, must be respected."

Presumably, the two people Rowling is referring to are Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard, who filed a restraining order against Depp in 2016 for domestic abuse. But moving on with their lives isn't tantamount to burying the events with silence, and respecting their privacy is possible without giving an accused abuser the headlining role in a major film franchise.

"Based on our understanding of the circumstances, the filmmakers and I are not only comfortable sticking with our original casting, but genuinely happy to have Johnny playing a major character in the movies," Rowling continues.

If the statement was thus far murky, this is where it feels downright evasive. "Our understanding of the circumstances" implies that Rowling, Yates, and others involved in Fantastic Beasts know something we don't – something not legally documented or publicly stated but which ostensibly absolves Grindelwald of his alleged crimes.

Or, quite simply, it means that they believe Depp over Heard.

Read the full statement here:

When Johnny Depp was cast as Grindelwald, I thought he’d be wonderful in the role. However, around the time of filming his cameo in the first movie, stories had appeared in the press that deeply concerned me and everyone most closely involved in the franchise.

Harry Potter fans had legitimate questions and concerns about our choice to continue with Johnny Depp in the role. As David Yates, long-time Potter director, has already said, we naturally considered the possibility of recasting. I understand why some have been confused and angry about why that didn’t happen.

The huge, mutually supportive community that has grown up around Harry Potter is one of the greatest joys of my life. For me personally, the inability to speak openly to fans about this issue has been difficult, frustrating and at times painful. However, the agreements that have been put in place to protect the privacy of two people, both of whom have expressed a desire to get on with their lives, must be respected.  Based on our understanding of the circumstances, the filmmakers and I are not only comfortable sticking with our original casting, but genuinely happy to have Johnny playing a major character in the movies.

I’ve loved writing the first two screenplays and I can’t wait for fans to see ‘The Crimes of Grindelwald’. I accept that there will be those who are not satisfied with our choice of actor in the title role. However, conscience isn’t governable by committee. Within the fictional world and outside it, we all have to do what we believe to be the right thing.

The Fantastic Beasts films will continue as scheduled, with The Crimes of Grindelwald releasing November 2018.