The conspiracy theories began after the actor recently became a vocal supporter of trans rights.
Nothing says “I’ve completely lost the plot in my own life” like pointing at a pregnant cis woman and screaming that she’s a secret transgender, but that’s exactly what overly online transphobes are currently doing to Daniel Radcliffe’s girlfriend.
Erin Darke, an actor best known for her roles on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Dietland, has been in a relationship with Radcliffe for more than ten years. Though they’ve largely kept their partnership to themselves, the couple announced to People last month that Darke is pregnant and expecting their first child later this year.
But that means nothing to anti-trans conspiracy theorists, many
of whom seized on photos of Darke and Radcliffe at a recent red carpet event
to spread disinformation about how Darke is secretly a trans woman. On
Twitter, fiction author Suzanne Seddon (who regularly posts COVID-19
conspiracy theories as well) posted a picture of Darke and Radcliffe
standing next to one another with the caption “now what do you see?🥴” — a
clear insinuation that Darke cannot be a “real” (cis) woman based on
physical features like relative height and facial structure.
Seddon belongs to a dedicated sub-subculture of
“transvestigators,” who promote a conspiracy theory claiming that hundreds,
if not thousands, of celebrities and wealthy individuals are actually trans,
or as they refer to them, “inverts.” As researcher and activist Mia Mulder
explains in her video on the subject, “transvestigators” believe that this
cabal of “inverts” have made Satanic bargains for power, which involve
changing their genders (for some reason) and ritually abusing children. The
conspiracy picked up much of its steam in 2014, when Joan Rivers died not
long after “joking” that Michelle Obama was trans due to her broad
shoulders. Conspiracy adherents believed that the Obamas had Rivers killed
to cover up their secret, propelling the theory forward shortly before the
QAnon and Pizzagate conspiracies also captivated the right.
“Transvestigators” will hunt for nonexistent “clues” to prove
anyone is secretly trans, from Bill and Melinda Gates and the Trump family
to the Williams sisters, Zendaya, Kate Bush, and the entire cast of
Goodfellas. Seddon later shared an obviously doctored video purporting that
former First Lady Barbara Bush wasn’t a “real” woman, either.
Each season of the show would focus on one of the seven novels.
But
Radcliffe is likely in the TERF headlights because he’s become a vocal
supporter of trans rights, at the same time as Harry Potter creator J.K.
Rowling has tripled down into becoming, uh, the opposite of that. Radcliffe
told reporters last year that he “needed to say something” to push back
against Rowling’s anti-trans rhetoric; the star’s new series Sharing Space,
a collaboration with The Trevor Project in which Radcliffe platforms LGBTQ+
youth and discusses their stories, premiered on Trans Day of Visibility last
week.
In Transphobia Land, you don’t talk to trans kids, you just
assert your will over their lives and bodies, and disparage cis women who
disagree with you while insisting you’re standing up for their rights. It
was inevitable that Radcliffe and Darke would end up getting hate for quite
literally just vibing, but that doesn’t make it any less gross. Stay classy,
‘phobes — we hope the happy couple never have any idea who you are.
