As the world mourns the loss of Alan Rickman, many are taking to the Internet to verbalize their sadness. J.K. Rowling sent out several tweets to share her grief, and Harry Potter fans “raised their wands” for Professor Severus Snape on Twitter. Perhaps the most touching tribute yet, however, came from Harry Potter himself, Daniel Radcliffe.
As reported by Entertainment Weekly, Radcliffe wrote an essay and posted it to his Google Plus page:
“Alan Rickman is undoubtedly one of the greatest actors I will ever work with. He is also, one of the loyalest and most supportive people I’ve ever met in the film industry. He was so encouraging of me both on set and in the years post-Potter. I’m pretty sure he came and saw everything I ever did on stage both in London and New York. He didn’t have to do that. 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.'”
Related: Remembering Alan Rickman Through His Greatest Roles
Having worked together on eight films, Radcliffe expressed his thanks for Rickman’s steadfast support, and explained that this was typical of Rickman. He made it clear that while Rickman was a first-rate actor, he was an even better man:
“People create perceptions of actors based on the parts they played so it might surprise some people to learn that contrary to some of the sterner (or downright scary) characters he played, Alan was extremely kind, generous, self-deprecating and funny. And certain things obviously became even funnier when delivered in his unmistakable double-bass.”
Radcliffe also shared his appreciation for Rickman’s influence on his career, saying that he learned so much from the thespian. He also said that “he was one of the first of the adults on Potter to treat me like a peer rather than a child… Film sets and theatre stages are all far poorer for the loss of this great actor and man.”
