Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling refused to allow Robin Williams to try out for a kids’ movie about a plucky orphan who stumbles upon a world of magic and fantasy – it’s like she never even saw Aladdin.
According to director Chris Columbus, who helmed the first two films of the fantasy franchise, the late, great Williams was desperately eager to join the cast of Harry Potter when he found out his long-time collaborator was in charge of launching the film series. However, Rowling insisted that the cast should be “100% British” to preserve the “authenticity” of the silly fantasy movies about flying brooms and magic Hitler. A fan of the book series, Williams was gunning for the roles of Rubeus Hagrid and Remus Lupin, but was denied an audition on the basis of Rowling’s “No Americans Allowed” policy that somehow did not extend to the first film’s director.
Frankly, Rowling’s ridiculous rule sounds like a convenient cover for the real reason she didn’t want Williams involved: The Columbus-directed Mrs. Doubtfireprobably offended her TERF tastes.