Dame Maggie Smith, Who Portrayed Professor McGonagall, Has Passed Away at 89
We are deeply saddened to report that Dame Maggie Smith, beloved actress known to Harry Potter fans for portraying Professor McGonagall, has passed away at the age of 89.
Her two sons, Toby Stephens and Chris Larkin, released a statement:
It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith. She passed away peacefully in hospital early this morning, Friday 27th September. An intensely private person, she was with friends and family at the end. She leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank the wonderful staff at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and unstinting kindness during her final days.
We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time.
Born in 1934, Smith grew up in Oxford, England, and began acting as a teenager in theater before later moving into films.
With an acting career that spanned more than six decades, Smith has been nominated for and won many an award. She won her first Oscar in 1970 in the Best Actress category for the 1969 film The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, and her second came in 1979 – Best Supporting Actress for California Suite. She also won five BAFTAs, four Emmy Awards, and three Golden Globes. In 1990, Smith was made a dame for her services to the performing arts.
Appearing in seven of the eight Harry Potter films, many of today’s younger generations grew up knowing Smith as Professor Minerva McGonagall: deputy headmistress of Hogwarts, Transfiguration professor, and Gryffindor’s Head of House. A fan favorite, McGonagall’s stern yet warm and witty character was portrayed perfectly by Smith in her iconic Scottish accent.
In response to the news, David Yates, director of the final four Potter films, described Smith as “acting royalty.”
Maggie was a true force of nature on set, formidable, often intimidating – gigantically talented – and always precisely prepared. She also had a wicked sense of humour and a good heart….
The presence and power of her work never faltered or dimmed, even when she was struggling with some health-related issues on one of the films. Her personality and her talent lit up whichever set she graced. I’ve been very lucky to work with a huge number of talented actors, but Maggie hovers somewhere above them all.
Daniel Radcliffe described her as a “legend.”
I will always consider myself amazingly lucky to have been able to work with her, and to spend time around her on set. The word legend is overused but if it applies to anyone in our industry then it applies to her. Thank you Maggie.
Smith was also more recently known for her role as Violet Crawley in the television series Downton Abbey, which first aired in 2010, ran for six seasons, and had two subsequent films released in 2018 and 2022.
Our deepest sympathies are with Smith’s family, friends, and loved ones at this difficult time.
