Harry Potter Star Shares His Heartwarming Memories of Alan Rickman

Harry Potter star Timothy Spall has shared some of his heart-warming memories of working with the late Alan Rickman. After eight films based on author J.K. Rowling’s best-selling boy wizard series, the entire franchise had utilized the talents of a huge number of beloved and respected actors. As one of the series’ key characters, Rickman played Professor Severus Snape to perfection, uncannily balancing the character’s likeable and detestable traits.

Snape spent much of the series as something of a red herring, intentionally making both readers and audiences feel that he was a despicable person with no redeeming characteristics. But as the series soon revealed, Snape’s perceived wickedness was an act – a brilliant covert operation that he willingly entered into in collaboration with Hogwarts’ headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. In order to pull off a character as complex and surprising as this, Snape’s casting had to be flawless and few could argue that this was achieved by casting Rickman. Throughout his career, Rickman, whose unexpected death shocked the world in 2016, was often cast in villainous roles. No one can forget his turn as Hans Gruber in Die Hard or the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. But simply because he had a knack for portraying unscrupulous characters certainly didn’t mean that was who he actually was.

In a recent interview with Looper, Rickman’s Harry Potter co-star, Timothy Spall, had nothing but heart-warming praise for the man who will forever be known as Severus Snape. With over 40 years of film, television and stage experience, Spall is a show business legend, starring in six of the eight Potter films alongside Rickman. Though it’s been six years since Rickman’s passing, Spall wasn’t about to hold back on how wonderful of an experience it was to work with Rickman during the Potter years, saying:

“The one thing I can tell you about Alan, considering that, apart from the tragedy of his loss and losing him at such a young age, really, in this day and age, he practically played so many sinister, rather formidable, terrifying characters — not always, but [he] was brilliant at it. The man himself was so different, [he] was so warm, was so kind and genuinely kind. On ‘Harry Potter,’ even when he wasn’t working, there wasn’t a day when he wasn’t coming in with a group of kids. There [were] always phone calls, ‘Can I come on the set?’ He’d be bringing friends’ children to show them around.”

“On one occasion, he met my mother-in-law, who was with my wife. He wasn’t used to meeting really anybody, apart from me, and he was absolutely charming with her. He was a really charming, very witty, and deeply intelligent and funny man, and also very, very bright — and actually one of the best actors of his time, really. We’ve had the privilege of having him and the tragedy of losing him. It was great to work with him.”

Rickman was greatly missed in the recent Harry Potter reunion special, and Spall’s kind words about his former co-star help fill fans in on just how much he was respected by those who had the privilege of working with him. There’s no question that without him, the character of Snape simply wouldn’t have been the same. It’s quite rare that a film adaptation of a hit book series lands an actor who so succinctly captures the specifics of a character. Rickman succeeded as Snape not just because he was a talented actor, however, but because he perfectly understands the conflict and nuances at play in the character.

In recent years there has repeatedly been talk of rebooting the entire Harry Potter franchise. This has been met with mixed opinions from fans, and acknowledgements from its stars that eventually this will happen. But even if it does happen, it’s hard to imagine being able to surpass the original set of films. Fans of the series all have their own favorite things about the films, of course, but when comparing the book to the films it’s very difficult to come up with any actor better suited to play Snape.

Source: Looper

About The Author

Mike Jones
(1646 Articles Published)

Mike Jones is an author, screenwriter, world traveller and cinephile. His work has been featured in print and online in a variety of publications, and he’s also a Berlinale Talents alumnus. Cinema has always moved him in a big way and aside from having seen The Talented Mr Ripley more times than any other living person, he maintains a pretty darn healthy physical media collection. His favourite filmmakers include: Jordan Peele, David Lean, Alfred Hitchcock, Mike Leigh, Steven Spielberg, the Dardenne Brothers, Noah Baumbach, Michael Haneke, Barry Jenkins and Andrea Arnold. Often jet-lagged, Mike once turned down a certain A-list celebrity’s offer to join them for a night of partying after a strange encounter in an airport.

More From Mike Jones