Late veteran Scottish actor, Robbie Coltrane who played Rubeus Hagrid in the Harry Potter series passed away on Friday. He was 72.
Talking about his dearly-loved character in the Harry Potter reunion special Harry Potter's 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts in which he was last seen, Robbie said, "The legacy of the [Harry Potter] movies is that my children’s generation will show them to their children, so you can be watching it in 50 years time, easy." He continued, "I’ll not be here, sadly, but Hagrid will."
Daniel Radcliffe, who played the protagonist 'Harry Potter' across all eight films, described the late actor as "a lovely man and an incredible actor."
Tom Felton who played Draco Malfoy in the 'Harry Potter' franchise, recounted one of his fondest memories with the late actor on Twitter.
Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian captures Robbie's unforgettable impact as Hagrid in these lines: "Hagrid was played with enormous richness and warmth by Robbie Coltrane, then 51, part of that supergroup generation of character actors who attained global recognition by appearing in the Harry Potter movies. Coltrane’s piercing yet kindly stare, mighty physical frame and richly imperious voice were etched in the minds of young audiences all over the world."
Robbie was born Anthony Robert McMillan on 30 March 1950 in Rutherglen, Scotland. He moved into acting in his early twenties, taking the stage name Coltrane (in tribute to jazz saxophonist John Coltrane), and worked in theatre and comedy.
He made his debut in acting with the 1980 movie Flash Gordon.
Besides his enchanting performance in Harry Potter, he also starred as the BAFTA award-winning character of criminal psychologist Dr Fitz in the critically acclaimed drama series Cracker (1993).
Robbie has also acted in several other films such as Ocean's Twelve (2004), National Treasure (2017) and Brave (2012) where he lent his voice to the character Lord Dingwall.
He also co-starred in GoldenEye and was known for his role as the iconic Bond villain Valentin Zukovsky in The World Is Not Enough. Other memorable performances include Nuns on the Run, The Adventures Of Huck Finn, and The Pope Must Die.
In the ’80s, he appeared in a short-lived sketch series called Alfresco alongside powerhouses Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, and Emma Thompson.
Robbie reunited with Thompson on the six-part drama series Tutti Frutti, for which he earned his first best actor British Academy Television Award nomination.
He breathed his last in a hospital near his home in Larbert, Scotland. The actor had been suffering from illness for the past two years. He also reportedly suffered from osteoarthritis.
He was also appointed as an OBE (Order of the British Empire) in the 2006 New Year Honours by Queen Elizabeth II for his services to drama.
J K Rowling, the creator of the "Harry Potter" books on which the films are based, said the Scottish actor was "an incredible talent and a complete one-off."
Robbie is survived by his ex-wife Rhona Gemmell and two children, son Spencer and daughter Alice.