J.K. Rowling has blasted Glamour UK online for dedicating one of its 2025 Women of the Year magazine covers to a group of trans women, accusing the publication of telling girls “men are better women than they are.”
The “Harry Potter” author’s latest remarks come just one day after Glamour UK unveiled “The Dolls,” its trans-centric 2025 Women of the Year cover. The image and special issue spotlights nine prominent, established and up-and-coming trans women models and activists, including Mya Mehmi, Dani St James, Shon Faye, Taira, Maxine Heron, Munroe Bergdorf, Bel Priestley, Munya and Ceval Omar.
On the cover, all nine models are pictured wearing the pro-trans “Protect the Dolls” t-shirt created and made popular by designer Conner Ives. Following its release, Rowling took to X to slam the cover.
“I grew up in an era when mainstream women’s magazines told girls they needed to be thinner and prettier,” Rowling wrote. “Now mainstream women’s magazines tell girls that men are better women than they are.”
Glamour announced that its Women of the Year theme this year is “sisterhood,” and some of the magazine’s other 2025 honorees include “The Substance” star Demi Moore, singer-songwriter Tyla, “Snow White” actress Rachel Zegler, English actress and model Adwoa Aboah and British soccer star Hannah Hampton, among others.
For the “Dolls” cover story, trans writer Faye wrote about the impetus for it being both the widespread support that Ives’ t-shirt inspired for trans women and trans rights earlier this year and the opposition and issues that trans people are facing in the U.K., the U.S. and around the world right now.
“‘Protect the Dolls’ is a positive sentiment, but as it becomes a widely embraced trend, we must all ask ourselves what does protection entail?” Faye wrote. “What does it look like in a society so utterly consumed with the degradation of a group of women who are often struggling to make ends meet, to get the healthcare they need and to try and pursue lives that contain at least some capacity for happiness and joy?”
“What it seems we really crave is to work, love and exist with dignity and, more broadly, the opportunities to thrive,” Faye concluded, calling for trans women to receive more professional chances in every industry. “If you gave the dolls that, you’d find most of us could easily protect ourselves.”
Rowling, meanwhile, has become well known in recent years for her anti-trans views and has earned pushback at times from some prominent celebrities, including “Fantastic Four” star Pedro Pascal. Her previous comments have led many to question Hollywood’s continued interest in the “Harry Potter” franchise. In September, both Rowling and “Harry Potter” star Emma Watson spoke about how the author’s anti-trans views have strained their relationship as well.
