It’s been four years since Harry Potter fans bid farewell to Alan Rickman, who portrayed their favourite villain Severus Snape flawlessly in all eight films.
A fan wrote to J.K. Rowling today on Twitter to share that in Italy that night, they aired Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, and that as always, she isn’t ready to say goodbye to Severus Snape. She then thanked the author for the unique character and for convincing Alan Rickman to portray him, for they had the perfect Severus Snape.
The 54-year-old author then replied that in Harry Potter & the Cursed Child, Snape makes his first appearance, with back turned from the audience. Rowling added that at the dress rehearsal, she saw him in the long black wig and immediately she teared up because for a split second, her irrational heart believed that when Snape would turn around, she’ll see Alan.
The illustrious actor who also had appearances in Love Actually and Die Hard passed away in London on January 14, 2016, surrounded by his family and friends. After battling cancer, at 69, the actor died.
Two years after his death, in 2018, Rickman’s personal letters revealed that the late actor have had some frustrations in his role as Professor Severus Snape.
At the ABA Rare Book Fair in London, the actor’s personal items were put up for action. Neil Pearson Rare Books released his collection which included the actor’s photographs, scripts, letters and personal diaries.
Harry Potter producer David Heyman, in one of his letters to Rickman, thanked him for making Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets a success. In the letter, Heyman also wrote that he knows that at some times, Rickman was frustrated but he wants him to know that he is an integral part of the films, and that he is brilliant.
- Advertisement -Rickman also spoke to the Los Angeles Times on his decade playing Severus Snape before his death. He told the publications that the role was a punctuation mark in his life every year because he would be doing other things, but would always come back to it, and that he was always aware of his place in the story even as others around him were not.
Asked if he was sad, Rickman also added that the point about a great story is that it has a beginning, a middle and end, and that the ending of the story was quite famous and judged beautifully by Rowling and David Yates. The actor finished his statement saying that it’s not a cause of sadness; hence, it’s a cause for celebration that it was rounded off so well.