By now we’ve all heard the awful news that screen and stage icon Alan Rickman has passed away. While the tributes are still pouring in from people he worked with around the globe, none are more poignant or touching than the farewell his friend and co-star from the Harry Potter series has bid him.
Daniel Radcliffe was just a young kid when he first stepped onto the set of the Harry Potter franchise, and it seems that Alan Rickman became something of a father figure to the young boy. He protected him and guided him and was always there even after they parted ways when the series ended. Here’s what Daniel Radcliffe had to say about the tragic passing of his friend.
Alan Rickman is undoubtedly one of the greatest actors I will ever work with. He is also, one of the loyalest and most supportive people I’ve ever met in the film industry. He was so encouraging of me both on set and in the years post-Potter. I’m pretty sure he came and saw everything I ever did on stage both in London and New York. He didn’t have to do that. I know other people who’ve been friends with him for much much longer than I have and they all say, ‘If you call Alan, it doesn’t matter where in the world he is or how busy he is with what he’s doing, he’ll get back to you within a day.’
People create perceptions of actors based on the parts they played so it might surprise some people to learn that contrary to some of the sterner (or downright scary) characters he played, Alan was extremely kind, generous, self-deprecating and funny. And certain things obviously became even funnier when delivered in his unmistakable double-bass.
As an actor, he was one of the first of the adults on Potter to treat me like a peer rather than a child. Working with him at such a formative age was incredibly important and I will carry the lessons he taught me for the rest of my life and career. Film sets and theatre stages are all far poorer for the loss of this great actor and man.
Alan Rickman will be sorely missed in the world of entertainment but his work will live on forever, capturing the magic of an extraordinary man. He first film role came at 42 years of age in the masterful Die Hard, where he gave us one of Hollywood’s all-time most memorable villains. He has left behind a legacy of great movies for fans young and old, playing characters he truly loved himself, and it is testament to how many lives he touched by how the world is saddened today.
RIP Alan Rickman
(Images and source – Popsugar, Cinemablend, Tumblr)
