John Lithgow wasn't thinking about J.K. Rowling's anti-trans rhetoric when he accepted his role in the upcoming Harry Potter TV series.

“I thought, why is this a factor at all?" the 79-year-old actor told The Times U.K. in an interview published Sunday, April 27, adding that he was "curious to talk to [Potter book series author Rowling]" at some point.

Lithgow announced that he would bring Albus Dumbledore to life in HBO's take on the iconic source material in February, becoming one of the first actors to join the cast. The Hogwarts headmaster was previously played by the late Richard Harris and Michael Gambon in the original film series.

Although many Potter fans are excited to return to Hogwarts, there has been considerable blowback from others who are critical of Rowling, 59, over repeated comments that she has made about the transgender community. Stars such as Pedro Pascal have branded the author a "heinous loser."

But Lithgow told The Times U.K. that Rowling's comments weren't on his mind when the offer came through. He also "absolutely" did not expect the criticism that he received for being associated with the fantasy book series' author.

"Of course, it was a big decision because it’s probably the last major role I’ll play," he told the outlet about his thought process when the offer came through. "It’s an eight-year commitment, so I was just thinking about mortality and that this is a very good winding-down role,"

The 3rd Rock from the Sun alum described a text message that he received from "a very good friend who is the mother of a trans child" as "the canary in the coalmine."

Despite the negative reaction, he said that he was not concerned or reconsidering the casting.

“No one complained when I agreed to play Dahl, but I’ve received so many messages about J.K. Rowling," Lithgow said, referencing his portrayal of Roald Dahl in the play Giant, which explored the antisemitism of the latter author. "Isn’t that odd?”

The actor did predict some complaints about another component of his casting — like the fact that he isn't British.

"I know there were plenty of people appalled that an American should be hired to play the ultimate English wizard," he said on The One Show in April. "But I will do my best."

Lithgow added, "I’m not an Englishman, although I’ve played one on TV. I remind everyone that I did play Winston Churchill on The Crown and did just fine.”

Multiple actors from the Harry Potter film series, including star Daniel Radcliffe, have spoken out against Rowling over the years.

In April 2024, Radcliffe, who played the titular character, said that he and the author had not been in touch recently. However, he told The Atlantic that her comments have made him feel "really sad."

"I do look at the person that I met, the times that we met, and the books that she wrote and the world that she created, and all of that is to me so deeply empathic," he explained. "Obviously Harry Potter would not have happened without her, so nothing in my life would have probably happened the way it is without that person. But that doesn’t mean that you owe the things you truly believe to someone else for your entire life."

Other Potter alums who have weighed in, in support of Rowling or otherwise, include Jason Isaacs, the late Robbie Coltrane, Harry Melling, Evanna Lynch and Rupert Grint.

Rowling has spoken out against Radcliffe, 35, and other famous critics in the past. In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter) in April 2024, she shared an independent review "of the medical evidence for transitioning children."

One follower responded to her on X, "Just waiting for Dan and Emma to give you a very public apology ... safe in the knowledge that you will forgive them ... " (Neither Radcliffe nor Watson, 35, have spoken out about their views on medical transitioning of children.)

"Not safe, I'm afraid," Rowling wrote in a reply. "Celebs who cosied up to a movement intent on eroding women's hard-won rights and who used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors can save their apologies for traumatised detransitioners and vulnerable women reliant on single sex spaces."