Downton Abbey’s Maggie Smith of Harry Potter fame dies at 89

Smith died early Friday in a London hospital, his sons, Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens, said in a statement. “She leaves behind two sons and five beloved grandchildren, who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother,” he said in a statement released through publicist Claire Dobbs.

a deep legacy

For millennials around the world, Maggie was best known for playing the dowager Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey, a role that echoes the actress known for purse-lipped sides and malicious cleavage, and Professor McGonagall in the Harry Potter films. Was created specifically for. One of the few actors to win a triple Oscar (two), Emmy (four) and Tony, Magee’s long career began on stage in the 1950s.

Her first Academy Award nomination was for playing Desdemona opposite Laurence Olivier’s Othello in 1965, before winning an Oscar for her role as an Edinburgh schoolgirl in 1969’s The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie.

She won her second Oscar for her supporting role in the 1978 comedy California Suite, a performance that prompted co-star Michael Caine to say: “Maggie didn’t just steal the movie, she stole grand.”

Other critically acclaimed roles include Lady Bracknell in Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest on the West End stage, a bitterly fighting 92-year-old old lady in Edward Albee’s play Three Tall Women, and her role in the 2001 black comedy film Gosford Park.

In 1990, Magee was knighted by Queen Elizabeth and became a dame. She was often rated as the leading British female actor of a generation that included Vanessa Redgrave and Judi Dench.

Input from AP and Reuters