J.K. Rowling Mourns Orlando Victim with Harry Potter Connection

Luis Vielma was one of 50 people who was killed Saturday night inside Pure nightclub.

Along with numerous other patrons, Vielma was enjoying an evening out when Omar Mateen used an assault rifle to gun down as many gay customers as he could.

It was the largest shooting massacre in U.S. history.

Because Vielma worked at Universal Studios’ Harry Potter World, his death was acknowledged by author J.K Rowling in the aftermath of this despicable tragedy.

“Luis Vielma worked on the Harry Potter ride at Universal,” the Harry Potter scribe wrote on Twitter. “He was 22 years old. I can’t stop crying.”

As you can see below, Rowling include with her message a photo of Vielma in his work attire:

Rowling also shares memories from Vielma’s friends, loved ones and those who met him at Universal Studios.

“@jk_rowling Trust me, you would have loved him. He was the guy in the breakroom you liked four seconds after walking in,” one user wrote, while another added:

“@jk_rowling @JMuniz822 had the pleasure of meeting him last week on my holidays, he was SO nice to my son, such a lovely guy.”

Reaction continues to pour in from the Orlando shooting.

From what we’ve gathered so far, it appears as if Mateen acted alone.

His father claims his son was spurred on to horrible action by the sight of two gay men kissing a couple months ago.

Mateen, a U.S. citizen born in New York, called 911 at one point during his attack and bragged about all the American lives he was taking.

He also aligned himself with ISIS, the terrorist organization that later took credit for the attack.

We can also confirm that Mateen’s ex-wife says he abused her during their marriage and that Mateen had been interviewed on two separate occasions by the FBI because they suspected he had links to terrorist activities.

Nevertheless, he was able to purchase multiple firearms legally.

Orlando Shooting: 50 Killed in Massacre at Gay Nightclub

Shortly after Rowling paid tribute to Vielma, meanwhile, Universal Studios Orlando released a statement regarding his death.

It reads as follows:

“We are deeply saddened over the loss of our team member. We are working to support his friends and colleagues here at Universal Orlando.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Luis, his family, and all the victims of this tragedy.”

View Slideshow: Orlando Shooting: Celebrities React in Shock, Anger

J.K. Rowling Slams Racists, Defends Casting of Black Actress as Hermione in Harry Potter Play

J.K. Rowling is frustrated that “a bunch of racists” have criticized the choice of casting a black actress to portray Hermione in the London stage production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

The play, which sold 175,000 tickets in 24 hours, stars Olivier-award-winning actress Noma Dumezweni as Hermione, the female lead in the literary series.

After critics lashed out about the casting announcement, Rowling defended the decision.

“With my experience of social media, I thought that idiots were going to idiot,” the author told the Observer.

“But what can you say? That’s the way the world is. Noma was chosen because she was the best actress for the job.”

Rowling recounts fans complaining to her, arguing that the character must be white because of something she wrote in one of the books.

“I had a bunch of racists telling me that because Hermione ‘turned white’ – that is, lost colour from her face after a shock – that she must be a white woman, which I have a great deal of difficulty with,” Rowling revealed.

“But I decided not to get too agitated about it and simply state quite firmly that Hermione can be a black woman with my absolute blessing and enthusiasm.”

Fans may have gotten too attached to Emma Watson, a white actress who originated the role onscreen in the feature films.

Last December, Rowling expressed her approval on Twitter over the casting as well, indicating that her books never specified Hermione as Caucasian.

“Canon: brown eyes, frizzy hair and very clever. White skin was never specified. Rowling loves black Hermione,” she wrote on Twitter.

This isn’t the first time Rowling has vocally expressed her distaste of racism and bigotry.

Last year, after presidential candidate Donald Trump made numerous statements against Muslims, Mexicans and women, Rowling compared the mogul to Voldemort, the nefarious villain in the Harry Potter series.

“How horrible. Voldemort was nowhere near as bad,” she wrote alongside a link to an article about Trump’s wish to ban Muslims from entering the U.S.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child picks up where the seventh book left off, with Harry as a married father of three who works for the Ministry of Magic.

The play is set to open in London’s West End in July 2016.

Kourtney Kardashian & Scott Disick Have Date With Kids at Harry Potter World

They both may be dating much younger hotties, but Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick can still find time to make like a family every now and then.

The former couple took their kids Mason, 6, and Penelope, 3, on a special visit to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios on Friday for a sweet family date.

Kourtney posted a photo to Instagram of Penelope pointing a wand at an interactive window in the pretend Potter village.

“A little Harry Potter magic,” Kourtney wrote in the caption.

Meanwhile, over at Scott’s Insta, we see a promo for a club appearance Scott is scheduled to do in Las Vegas.

SMH.

Nevertheless, the foursome “enjoyed the land’s signature ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, Flight of the Hippogriff and Mason had a wand-fitting at Ollivander’s wand shop,” an insider told E! News. 

The attraction is scheduled to open to the public on April 7, so the Disick fam was treated to a little sneak preview.

“Mason and Penelope were also seen using their wand at several of the land’s interactive windows,” the source added.

Too bad they couldn’t use the wand to turn Scott into a sober father.

As we reported earlier this week, Kourtney Kardashian is rumored to be dating Diddy’s son, 24-year-old model Quincy Brown, and Scott is said to have found a new girlfriend in 20-year-old model and Kendall Jenner lookalike Christine Burke.

However, Scott and Kourtney were seen hanging out earlier this week as well, which left fans confused about their relationship status.

Kourt took to Snapchat to tell everyone to take a chill pill.

“By the way everyone relax, people that have three kids together spend time together.”

Especially people who have three kids together and need to keep a storyline going for their reality show.

View Slideshow: Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick: Romance Rewind

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Sequel Details Revealed!

Over the summer, JK Rowling made fans around the world feel like they’d been stunned by a petrificus totalus spell when she announced that a new Harry Potter story is in development.

Last night, she ramped up the anticipation even more by revealing concept art and key details about Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

Harry Potter & the Cursed Child Concept Art

Rowling posted a link to the above video, along with a tweet reading, “So now you know it really isn’t a prequel: Harry Potter & the #CursedChild starts #19yearslater!”

“It will tell a new story,” Rowling later elaborated in an interview. “I don’t want to say too much more, because I don’t want to spoil what I know will be a real treat for fans.”

Yes, the new story will pick up 19 years after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and will reportedly focus on one of Harry’s children.

Rowling has brought Potter back before in short stories posted to her Pottermore website, but this is the first time fans will be treated to a full-length tale featuring Harry and friends since the author wrapped up her original 7-part series. 

Sadly, Potter obsessives won’t be able to line up at their local bookstore or cineplex for this installment. Cursed Child is a stage play that will begin its run at London’s Palace Theatre in the summer of 2016.

Of course, Rowling and her collaborators will be passing up some major Muggle money if they don’t eventually the two-part play to be adapted into a movie.

Daniel Radcliffe Admits to Being Drunk on Harry Potter Set, Shades Tom Cruise

When you see footage of Daniel Radcliffe rapping an Eminem song in its entirety at a bar, you might assume the dude has had a few.

But as he’s said in numerous interviews, Radcliffe hasn’t touched a drop in several years, having sworn off the sauce after losing control of his drinking in his late teens and early twenties.

Of course, during that time, Radcliffe was also filming the final installments of the Harry Potter franchise, and he’s repeatedly dodged questions about whether or not he performed any drunkus at workus spells on set.

In a new interview with Playboy, however, Radcliffe opens up about everything from boozing to masturbation, and it turns out he did, in fact, sip a little firewhiskey in the halls of Hogwarts:

“I can say lots of well-meaning stuff—why it happened and how I stopped—for three hours, and the headline would be DRUNK ON THE SET OF HARRY POTTER,” Radcliffe said. “So I don’t talk about it as much now.”

We understand Daniel’s reluctance to talk about his sobriety, and we hate to fulfill his splashy headline prophecy, but c’mon – “drunk on the Harry Potter set” is too good to pass up.

In the same interview, Daniel was asked about the challenges of being a short guy in Hollywood, and he had this to say:

“Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise have very different careers, and they’re both about the same height as I am…If you’re asking, ‘Can you play a really fucking tall person?’ No, obviously not.”

It’s an interesting comment that some folks are interpreting as shade, because 1. Tom Cruise does attempt to play tall dudes (which Daniel seems to think is lame), and 2. He’s “officially” several inches taller than Radcliffe (who cops to being 5’5″).

We’re guessing he didn’t intend to call Tom out for lying about his height, but we like when other celebs confirm that Cruise’s Xenu thetans didn’t actually help him sprout to six foot.

Did J.K. Rowling Steal The Idea For Harry Potter? See What Two Writers Think Of Similarities To Their Work!

Harry Potter is one of the most inspired, imaginative works of literature of the past hundred years.

Only, is it the most original??

Certain similarities to other works of fiction that predate J.K. Rowling‘s tales of witchcraft and wizardry have led some fans to cry plagiarism!

Related: J.K. Rowling Says We’re All Pronouncing He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named’s Name Wrong!

For instance, the 1986 horror film Troll is known mostly for its unrelated sequel Troll 2, AKA the “Best Worst Movie” ever made.

But did you know it also has a young boy hero named Harry Potter? Who learns to do magic spells??

Screenwriter Ed Naha was asked recently about the similarities to his lead character — who predates the first Harry Potter book by over a decade — and he said:

“I think the only thing similar, aside from their names, is that they were both kids who spoke English. Also, they both walk upright.”

He doesn’t think J.K. took anything from his movie? Not really! He added:

“If Rowling did recall the name with affection and decided to use it, so what? In both novels and scripts, I’ve used names culled from comic books and movies I was fond of, as are most of my pseudonyms.”

This is not dissimilar to statements made by author Neil Gaiman.

His character Tim Hunter in the DC Comics series The Books Of Magic was also a 12-year-old boy with glasses who gets a pet owl and learns to become a powerful sorcerer.

Related: Kids Who Read Harry Potter More Likely To Be Accepting Of Homosexuality And Immigrants!

When he was asked shortly after Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was first published, he revealed:

“I was tracked down by a Scotsman journalist who had noticed the similarities between my Tim Hunter character and Harry Potter, and wanted a story. And I think I rather disappointed him by explaining that, no, I certainly *didn’t* believe that Rowling had ripped off Books of Magic, that I doubted she’d read it and that it wouldn’t matter if she had: I wasn’t the first writer to create a young magician with potential, nor was Rowling the first to send one to school. It’s not the ideas, it’s what you do with them that matters.”

Well, there ya go.

If even the authors don’t feel at all like Rowling ripped them off, we don’t see why fans should feel that way!

What do YOU think??

[Image via Warner Bros./DC Comics/MGM.]

Harry Potter And The Cursed Child Musical Will Now Be 4 Hours Long & Split Into Two Different Parts!

This is great news if you’re a Potterhead and somewhat awful news if you have a short attention span…

We were blown away when we heard that J.K. Rowling was crafting a brand-new Harry Potter story, but it was music to our ears when we found out that the new chapter was actually going to be told in the form of a musical!

Well, it’s been three months since Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was officially announced, and now the team behind the West End production dropped yet another major bomb.

As it turns out, the musical is so grand that it’s actually being cut into two 2-hour long parts that will be shown at different times!

Related: You’re Saying He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named’s Name Wrong

Kind of exactly how Deathly Hallows worked in theaters, now only done on the stage.

J.K. made the big reveal herself on Friday, saying:

Due to the epic nature of the story we’ve been working on, Harry Potter & the #CursedChild will be in two parts! @HPPlayLDN
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) September 24, 2015

What this means is that you’ll be able to see Harry Potter 8 – Part 1 on one night, then watch Part 2 some other time — or you could even make it a day at the theater and watch them back-to-back!

Related: J.K. Rowling Is 100 Percent Killing The Twitter Game!

The completely original musical is set to go up Summer 2016 in London before traveling the world, and you can expect tickets to go on sale later this Fall.

Are U not absolutely avada kedavra-ing over this news?!

[Image via Pottermore.]