JK Rowling pranked by Russians into thinking she was speaking to Zelensky

Author JK Rowling has fallen foul to a prank that made her believe she was talking to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.

The prank was committed by the prolific Russian comedy duo Vovan and Lexus who are well known for their celebrity calls and have previously pranked people such as Elton John, George W. Bush, Billie Eilish and Prince Harry.

In the 12-minute video, which was posted by the pair on the Russian video-sharing platform RuTube, Rowling was fooled into believing she was speaking with Zelensky.

At one point during the cringe-worthy clip, the pranksters asked Rowling for a “cultural request” and went on to ask that the Z-shaped lightning bolt scar on Harry Potter’s forehead be changed to a Ukrainian trident, as the letter Z has become a Russian symbol of the war.

The prankster asked: “Is it possible to somehow remove this… due to the geopolitical situation? Maybe it’s better to put the Ukrainian trident – it’s our sign of Ukraine – on his forehead.”

Rowling replied: “I will look at that. It might be good for me to do something with that myself on social media, because I think that that would get into the newspapers.”

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In recent years, Rowling has faced accusations of transphobia for her comments made about gender identity.

The pranksters played on this in their fake Zelensky phone call as they asked the Harry Potter author about Professor Dumbledore’s sexuality.

The prank callers asked: “Is Dumbledore gay? I won’t tell anyone. And who did he sleep with?”

Rowling explained she confirmed in 2007 that she wrote Dumbledore as a gay man, but went on to say that “he’s an old man when we see him in the books, so his love life is no longer very important. But yes, that’s how I saw him”.

The prankster replied: “I will never tell this to anyone. Hopefully not with a transgender person.”

Rowling appeared to laugh at the comment.

The prank callers also told Rowling that they were writing the Harry Potter killing curse “Avada Kedavra” on missiles.

Vovan and Lexus, the comedy pranksters have been criticised in the past for targeting opponents of the Kremlin, with some speculating that they are state actors.

A spokesperson for Rowling said: "We can confirm that J.K. Rowling was a victim of a distasteful hoax video call by Russian pranksters, Vovan and Lexus, posing on camera as Ukraine’s President Zelensky.

"J.K. Rowling was approached to talk about her extensive charitable work in Ukraine, supporting children and families who have been affected by the current conflict in the region.

"The video, which has been edited, is a distorted representation of the conversation."

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