Last week, Watson said that she still loves Rowling and refuses to "cancel her out" despite their differences on the subject. But on Monday, the author responded by saying her own feelings towards her "former friend" had soured after she says Watson publicly poured "petrol on the flames" of the debate at the peak of threats against her.

Rowling wrote on X: "Like other people who've never experienced adult life uncushioned by wealth and fame, Emma has so little experience of real life she's ignorant of how ignorant she is." Watson, 35, played Hermione Granger in the eight films based on Rowling's books between 2001 and 2011. She and Daniel Radcliffe were among the stars who distanced themselves from Rowling when the author sparked a row by speaking out against trans activism, which Rowling said had eroded the concept of biological sex. The writer was accused of being transphobic, which she denied, saying she was worried about the effect on women in single-sex spaces. In an interview last week, Watson said: "It's my deepest wish that I hope people who don't agree with my opinion will love me, and I hope I can keep loving people who I don't necessarily share the same opinion with." In her new post on Monday, Rowling wrote: "I'm not owed eternal agreement from any actor who once played a character I created. The idea is as ludicrous as me checking with the boss I had when I was twenty-one for what opinions I should hold these days." She said it had been, however, "hard to shake a certain protectiveness" after knowing someone since they were 10.  (BBC/ Getty Images)