Over the course of the past seven decades, Dame Maggie Smith gave us one magnificent performance after another, cementing her reputation as one of the biggest icons of the British acting scene. She passed away at the age of 89, and tributes poured in from all around the world, with many of her fans and co-stars honoring her life and legacy.
Smith has been acting since the 50s when she mostly focused on her stage career before making a transition to the silver screen. She went on to win two Oscars for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and California Suite, in addition to receiving four more nominations.
The general public knows her as Professor Minerva McGonagall from the Harry Potter films, but we’ve also watched her in Hook, Sister Act, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, A Room with a View, and Gosford Park. On the TV side, she’s best known as Dowager Countess from Downton Abbey, for which she won three Emmy Awards.
Smith’s sons Toby Stephens and Chris Larkin confirmed she passed away on September 27, adding she was at a hospital surrounded by her friends and family. King Charles III released a statement following the tragic news, describing her as “a national treasure”, whose warmth and wit shone through both off and on the stage.
Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint were among many actors paying homage to Smith on social media, along with her Downton Abbey co-stars Hugh Bonneville and Michelle Dockery and her Sister Act co-star Whoopi Goldberg.
