There have been many winners at this year’s BAFTA , the British Oscars, but only one person caught Twitter’s attention and wasn’t even in the running for any awards.
It was Emma Watson, who was a guest to present Best British Film ( Kenneth Branaugh’s Belfast won), and with just one sentence.
“Our next presenter is Emma Watson,” said host Rebel Wilson before welcoming the Harry Potter star and UN ambassador for women’s rights to the stage. “She proudly calls herself a feminist, but we all know she is a witch, ” she said .
Watson’s answer? “I’m here for all the witches.”
Emma Watson is a queen for this pic.twitter.com/fng3dHsfYJ
— Joe🥤 (@JoePassmore) March 13, 2022
It might seem like a throwaway sentence, but on Twitter users have interpreted it with a particular meaning:
https://twitter.com/jamieeast/status/1503100448756178950
Emma Watson’s “I’m here for *all* of the witches, by the way” was a giant dig at JK and I love her for it 💗 #BAFTAs
— DJ MX W0RLD🌹 (@charlottealiced) March 13, 2022
Harry Potter author JK Rowling recently hit the headlines for her comments on Scotland ‘s gender recognition bill , which would make it easier for transgender people to change sex on documents. Last week, Rowling tweeted about “the likely negative consequences this law could have for women and girls,” a comment that brought back allegations of transphobia by users .
Rowling’s views on transgender people have been criticized for years, and the climax was reached with a series of transphobic tweets posted by the writer in 2020 that led the Harry Potter cast to publicly distance themselves from the author; among the actors to do so, Daniel Radcliffe and Watson himself.
“Trans people are who they say they are and deserve to live their lives without having to be constantly questioned and told that they are not who they say they are,” Watson tweeted in response to the writer. “I want my trans followers to know that I and so many other people around the world are with you, we respect you and love you for who you are.”
Trans people are who they say they are and deserve to live their lives without being constantly questioned or told they aren’t who they say they are.
— Emma Watson (@EmmaWatson) June 10, 2020
Watson’s name has been trending on Twitter for hours since his BAFTA commentary.