Maggie Smith, Acting Legend Who Played Professor McGonagall in Harry Potter Films, Dies at 89

Dame Maggie Smith, the versatile, decorated English actress who made an indelible impression on generations of fans for iconic performances in everything from the Harry Potter franchise to Downton Abbey, has passed away.

According to Variety, the multiple Oscar and Emmy Award-winning actor died Friday at the age of 89 in London.

“It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith,” her sons Toby Stephens and Chris Larkin said in a statement provided to the trade outlet. “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.”

Looking back on Maggie Smith's esteemed acting career

Best known to present-day genre audiences for her decade-long run in the Harry Potter film series, Smith brought the character of Professor Minerva McGonagall to life in seven of the eight original Potter movies. Author J.K. Rowling created the character, a half-blood Animagus who rose to prominence in the Wizarding World as the imposingly dignified and highly intelligent lead of House Gryffindor and Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts. Smith, as fans know, took jaw-dropping ownership of the live-action role, portraying McGonagall as a teacher whose sternly composed exterior concealed an unbreakable, benevolent spirit.

“She was a fierce intellect, a gloriously sharp tongue, could intimidate and charm in the same instant and was, as everyone will tell you, extremely funny,” actor Daniel Radcliffe, who played the titular boy wizard, said in a statement (via Variety). “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.”

Before the Potter films, Smith already had cultivated an impressive genre resume. Big-screen highlights include Clash of the Titans (1981) as sea goddess Thetis; Steven Spielberg’s Hook (1991) as the grown-up version of Wendy Darling; The Secret Garden (1993) as Mrs. Medlock, for which she earned a BAFTA nomination; From Time to Time (2009) as Mrs. Thomas Oldknow; and Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang (2010) as Mrs. Docherty.

Smith also lent her voice to a small handful of animated movies and video games, including the CGI feature Gnomeo and Juliet (2011) and sequel Sherlock Gnomes (2018), in which she played blue gnome leader Lady Bluebury. She also reprised her role as Professor McGonagall in the 2018 mobile game Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery. And, of course, we'd be remiss if we didn't mention her Emmy-winning tenure as Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, in the acclaimed period drama Downton Abbey and its two film spinoffs.

Like many British actors who found Hollywood success over the course of lengthy careers, Smith got her start in traditional stage acting, receiving critical recognition almost from her very first appearance in the mid-1950s onward.

Routinely on awards lists for both stage and screen, Smith won a Best Actress Tony in 1990 for her portrayal of Lettice Douffet in Lettice and Lovage. She also earned two Oscars: one for Best Actress for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969); the other for Best Supporting Actress for California Suite (1978). She also collected four Emmys, three Golden Globes, five Screen Actors Guild Awards, as well as a host of nominations and awards — including five BAFTAs —  in her native Britain.

Born in the East London town of Ilford on December 28, 1934, Smith grew up in nearby Oxford, where she attended Oxford High School before starting her acting career, while still in her teens, as a student at the Oxford Playhouse. She honed her acting skills on Shakespeare and traditional theater, but by the mid-1950s, recognition of her talent quickly propelled her into more contemporary roles on Broadway, television, and film. 

Smith’s acting career spanned more than six decades, establishing her early in her career as a treasured icon of Britain’s theatrical culture. In 1990, Queen Elizabeth II made her a Dame for her extensive contributions to the fine and performing arts.

Smith is survived by her two sons, Christopher Larkin and Toby Stephens, and five grandchildren.

The Harry Potter movies air regularly on SYFY, check the schedule here.