United Kingdom, Feb. 1 -- John Lithgow finds J.K. Rowling's trans stance "ironic and inexplicable".

The 80-year-old actor will play Albus Dumbledore in the upcoming Harry Potter TV series and thinks that the author's advocacy for single-sex spaces is at odds with the inclusive themes of her wizardry novels.

John said at a screening of his new film Jimpa at the Rotterdam Film Festival: "I take this subject extremely seriously. She has created this amazing canon for young people and it has jumped into the consciousness of the society. It's about good versus evil, kindness versus cruelty. I find her views ironic and inexplicable. I've never met her, she's not really involved in this production at all. But the people who are, are remarkable...