For me, Alan Rickman will always be the perfect movie villain. The first film I ever saw him in was Die Hard as Hans Gruber, and while his immense talent did not stand out to me at the age of eight, it would two years later, in 2001.
While 10-year-old me was marveling over the casting choices of Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson as Harry, Ron, and Hermione in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone — for looking exactly as how I pictured them in them from the book — the casting choice that always amazed me most was that of Alan Rickman as Severus Snape.
He managed to perfectly capture the aura that surrounded Snape in the books. Most notably, he could remove the warmth from his eyes. In the book Snape’s eyes were described as “cold and empty and made you think of dark tunnels” — the complete opposite of Alan’s eyes. Actor Alan melted into the character of Snape — there was no distinction between the two when on screen.
This ability to fully become Snape was shown repeatedly throughout the series. And while the series was full of emotional moments, Alan’s final scenes were some of the most poignant. He captured the calm turmoil of Snape, and was able to convey his strong emotions in a way that was true to Rowling’s vision.
This wasn’t the only role he seamlessly melted into. In hindsight, eight-year-old me should have been more impressed with his portrayal of Hans Gruber in Die Hard. He was the strongest actor on set, and he became Hans with no traces of Alan Rickman left behind. Bruce Willis was always Bruce Willis as John McClane, but Alan was Hans Gruber as Hans Gruber.
He also proved this yet again in his role as Sheriff George of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. Alan Rickman the person never showed or competed for attention when on screen. Even when providing his voice to Marvin in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, he was Marvin, not Alan.
Aside from his ability to melt into a role, I will always remember Alan through the kind words of those who knew him best — peers in the world of acting. The praise of the life that he had outside of acting and of the person he was in his daily life contribute to his memory. He was not only a great actor, but also a great man. He supported his co-stars no matter what, and the stories about how he acted on set and treated them after filming further prove this point.
Daniel Radcliffe, in a social media post about Alan following his death, stated, “I know other people who’ve been friends with him for much much longer than I have and they all say, ‘If you call Alan, it doesn’t matter where in the world he is or how busy he is with what he’s doing, he’ll get back to you within a day.’”
Maybe it is the anecdotes mixed with his ability to melt into a role that cause me to crown him the perfect movie villain. Knowing that he was so good as a person but oh so bad as a character made his ability to be evil all the more amazing.
In losing Alan Rickman, we lost an amazing actor whose versatility and skill might never be replaced. However, he will live on through those performances, and an entire generation who will never forget that the section on werewolves begins on page 394.
