To the dread of Harry Potter fans, the world heard the terrible news of Alan Rickman’s death on Jan. 14. It broke our hearts that Snape, the professor with the best dramatic one-liners in movie history, passed away. Rickman was loved for his depth of character and incredible acting skills that went into making Snape the character we know today. It wouldn’t surprise anyone that Rickman’s done more than just Harry Potter, but for a lot of us, it’s hard to see him outside of his depiction in JK Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban as an “ugly git” with an “abnormally large nose” who needs to “wash his hair, the slimeball.” But as tribute to the great man Alan Rickman, we should appreciate eight of his movies that aren’t Harry Potter.
- Die Hard (1988)
Playing “Hans Gruber,” a much younger Alan Rickman than we’re used to is the cold blooded villain, taking hostages and doling out terror in this classic late 80s movie.
- Truly, Madly, Deeply (1990)
This movie is the story of the leading character, “Nina,” who is in the wake of losing her romantic partner. Alan Rickman plays the part of her dead lover, coming back into Nina’s life as a ghost, making it even harder for Nina to let go of her lost love.
- Robin Hood Prince of Thieves (1991)
Though there are several versions of this legendary tale, Alan Rickman took part in this timeless story. In this take of the classic Robin Hood, Alan Rickman plays the Sheriff “George” of Nottingham.
- Galaxy Quest (1999)
A parody for the beloved Star Trek series, Galaxy Quest is the story of the cast of a popular show in the 80s who is found by aliens that enlist their very unqualified help to command a real ship. Alan Rickman played a pretentious actor of the theater whose role in Galaxy Quest was an alien science officer with prosthetic head attachments.
- Love Actually (2003)
This mishmash of interconnecting relationships portrays a plain look at life, and how it doesn’t always work out happily. We’ll always love Alan Rickman’s character and his blunt and platonic interest in “Sarah,” his employee, and her love life.
- Snow Cake (2006)
Alan Rickman plays the role of “Alex Hughes,” who gives a hitchhiking stranger, “Vivienne Freeman,” a ride. After getting in a car accident with Vivienne not surviving, Rickman’s character befriends an even more unlikely character, “Linda Freeman,” Vivienne’s autistic mother.
As a quirky adaptation of the book by Douglas Adams, it may surprise you to know that Alan Rickman was in The Hitchhiker’s Guide. Rickman was the voice of “Marvin the Paranoid Android” in this comedic science fiction movie.
- Alice in Wonderland (2010)
Not many people may know this, but in the 2010 “Alice,” Alan Rickman was the voice of the Blue Caterpillar, uttering those famous lines: “Whooo are Yooou?” in his iconic, dreary voice.
Amidst all of his movies, we’ll always love Alan Rickman and everything he’s done. The world will miss him and watch his movies forever. Rest in Peace Alan Rickman.
Leave a Reply