Robbie Coltrane, comedian and Harry Potter, James Bond actor, dies at 72
Veteran Scottish actor Robbie Coltrane, known for his roles in the Harry Potter and James Bond film franchises, has died. He was 72.
Coltrane’s agent confirmed to Deadline that the actor died at a hospital near his home in Larbert, Scotland, after dealing with health issues for the last two years. His agency, WME, also confirmed his death to The Hollywood Reporter.
For a decade beginning in 2001, Coltrane portrayed lovable Hogwarts gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid in the Harry Potter film series, gaining him worldwide recognition.
Photos: Robbie Coltrane through the years
“He will probably be best remembered for decades to come as Hagrid in the Harry Potter films, a role which brought joy to children and adults alike all over the world, prompting a stream of fan letters every week for over 20 years,” Coltrane’s agent, Belinda Wright, said in a statement obtained by Sky News. She remembered Coltrane as a “wonderful actor” who was “forensically intelligent” and “brilliantly witty,” according to BBC News.
J.K. Rowling, who penned the Harry Potter books that inspired the film franchise, told The Telegraph in 2001 that Coltrane had been at the very top of her “dream cast” list for the film.
“Robbie is just perfect for Hagrid because Hagrid is a very loveable character, quite likeable, quite comic … but he had to have — you really do have to sense — a certain toughness underneath … and I think Robbie does that perfectly,” she said, according to the newspaper.
Coltrane gained recognition as a comedian in the 1980s, The Guardian reported, and he appeared in dozens of films and television shows over the course of his career. He earned several British Academy Television Awards, including honors for his roles in the British TV series “Cracker” and “National Treasure.” He portrayed Russian crime boss Valentin Dmitrovich Zukovsky in the 1995 James Bond film “GoldenEye” and 1999′s “The World Is Not Enough.”
Friends and fans took to social media to remember Coltrane:
Coltrane is survived by his sister, Annie Rae; his children, Spencer and Alice; and the mother of his children, Rhona Gemmell, according to BBC News.
Actor Robbie Coltrane at his home in Kilburn with his Dodge car, London, 1980. (Photo by David Corio/Redferns)
Actors (L-R) Hugh Laurie, Rowan Atkinson and Robbie Coltrane in a scene from episode ‘Ink and Inplacability’ of the BBC television sitcom ‘Black Adder the Third’, June 2nd 1987. (Photo by Don Smith/Radio Times/Getty Images)
Robbie Coltrane wears the red nose for Red Nose Day 1989, England. (Photo by Steve Shipman/Comic Relief via Getty Images)
British actors Billy Connolly (left) and Robbie Coltrane wearing Hawaiian shirts and leis, circa 1990. (Photo by Richard Blanshard/Getty Images)
Scottish actor Robbie Coltrane stars as Valentin Dmitrovich Zukovsky in the James Bond film ‘GoldenEye’, 1995. (Photo by Keith Hamshere/Getty Images)
UNSPECIFIED, ENGLAND – JANUARY 01: Robbie Coltrane and Helen Mirren pose for a portrait session during the filming of the Prime Cracker sketch to be shown on Comic Relief’s Red Nose Day telethon held on March 14, 1997. (Photo by BBC/Comic Relief via Getty Images)
Scottish actor Robbie Coltrane as Valentin Dmitrovich Zukovsky and Irish actor Pierce Brosnan as 007 in a scene from the James Bond film ‘The World Is Not Enough’, 1999. (Photo by Keith Hamshere/Getty Images)
Daniel Radcliffe and Robbie Coltrane during ‘Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets’ New York Premiere – Arrivals at The Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City, New York, United States. (Photo by Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 07: Actor Robbie Coltrane attends the World Premiere of Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows – Part 2 at Trafalgar Square on July 7, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 21: (L-R) Ewen Bremner, Robbie Coltrane, director Mike Newell, Holliday Grainger and Jeremy Irvine attend the photocall for ‘Great Expectations’ which will close the 56th BFI London Film Festival at Empire Leicester Square on October 21, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images for BFI)
NEW YORK, NY – NOVEMBER 05: Actor Robbie Coltrane attends the New York premiere of "Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations" at AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13 theater on November 5, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FL – JUNE 18: In this handout provided by Universal Orlando Resort, Harry Potter film stars including Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange), Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid) Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom) attended an exclusive preview of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley at Universal Orlando Resort on June 18, 2014 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Kevin Kolczynski /Universal Orlando Resort via Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FL – JUNE 19: Domhnall Gleeson, Robbie Coltrane and Warwick Davis are interviewed at The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter Diagon Alley at Universal Orlando on June 19, 2014 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images)
