The plot of J.K. Rowling's latest crime novel has caused widespread controversy online.

As per a now-viral tweet from Pink News, the new novel, titled Troubled Blood and written under Rowling's pseudonym 'Robert Galbraith', is about "a murderous cis man who dresses as a woman to kill his victims".

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Now, Robbie Coltrane, who played Hagrid, the Hogwarts groundskeeper in the Harry Potter film series, has spoken out in defense of the author, claiming that her critics "wait around to be offended".

The Scottish actor added that he didn't find any of the author's comments about the transgender community offensive.

Robbie Coltrane. [[imagecaption|| Credit: PA Images]]

"I don't think what she said was offensive really," Coltrane told Radio Times. "I don't know why but there's a whole Twitter generation of people who hang around waiting to be offended. They wouldn't have won the war, would they?"

Coltrane continued: "That's me talking like a grumpy old man, but you just think, 'Oh, get over yourself. Wise up, stand up straight and carry on.'"

However, the actor declined the news outlet's request to comment further on the matter because he did not personally want to receive any hate mail.

He said: "I don't want to get involved in all of that because of all the hate mail and all that s***, which I don't need at my time of life."

JK Rowling. [[imagecaption|| Credit: PA Images]]

However, despite the claims that J.K. Rowling holds transphobic views, this is something that the author has repeatedly denied.

This comes after Rowling penned an essay earlier this summer, outlining her views about transgender people, including her belief that trans activism is "pushing to erode the legal definition of sex and replace it with gender", something that is "offering cover to predators like few before it".

'Harry Potter' star Robbie Coltrane defends JK Rowling amid transphobia row