Uh, so WTF is going on in the world? We lose David Bowie and Alan Rickman in the same week? I wrote this headline just a few days ago, only with Bowie’s name in place of Rickman’s, and in fact the details of their passing are oddly similar. Both men were 69, and both battled cancer. Both were massive losses for the entertainment world (and the world in general) and will be seriously missed.
Rickman was an absolute legend of both stage and screen. His family announced on Thursday that Rickman had passed away surrounded by family and friends in London. Like with Bowie, we don’t know what type of cancer he had, but that hardly matters. What matters is that we’ve lost another wonderful artist and it’s really heartbreaking.
Whether you were most familiar with Rickman’s work as Snape in the Harry Potter movies, or were a bigger fan of his less celebrated roles in Die Hard, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, or Truly, Madly, Deeply, certainly you’ll have known and enjoyed his work over the years. Everyone who knew him described him as a wonderfully smart, loyal, and funny man who was a pleasure to work with.
Alan Rickman was an actor's actor; courageous, generous, witty & surprising. When he laughed he lit up a room. A prince. You will be missed.
— Susan Sarandon (@SusanSarandon) January 14, 2016
I wake up to hear about Alan Rickman's passing. It hit hard, although we only ever met once. Too many deaths. Too much dark.
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) January 14, 2016
There are no words to express how shocked and devastated I am to hear of Alan Rickman's death. He was a magnificent actor & a wonderful man.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) January 14, 2016
This really is so heartbreaking. These things usually come in threes, so please tell me we’re not going to lose another legend soon. We can’t take any more!