Alan Rickman in a still from the Harry Potter franchise
Actor Alan Rickman, star of films such as
Harry Potter and
Die Hard, has died at the age of 69, reports
BBC . He was suffering from cancer.
A statement from Mr Rickman's family read: "The actor and director Alan Rickman has died from cancer at the age of 69. He was surrounded by family and friends."
Mr Rickman leaves behind him a legendary body of work spanning screen, TV and stage. His earliest successes came with theatre roles in productions of
The Seagull and
Les Liaisons Dangereuses. Hollywood stardom followed soon after, with breakthrough roles as terrorist Hans Gruber in 1988 hit
Die Hard and the Sheriff of Nottingham in 1991's
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.
Alan Rickman also played romantic leads in films like
Sense and Sensibility and
Love, Actually. His quirkier turns include appearing as Metatron, the Voice of God, in the satire
Dogma and voicing Marvin the Paranoid Android in the film adaptation of
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.His most acclaimed role was as the lead character in TV movie
Rasputin: Dark Servant of Destiny, for which he won a Golden Globe and a SAG award. He also won a BAFTA for his performance in
Robin Hood.
Mr Rickman's best known work was possibly in the
Harry Potter franchise, in which he played villain-hero Severus Snape. His very last film will release this year - an adaptation of
Alice in Wonderland in which he voices Absolem the caterpillar, reprising his role from Tim Burton's 2010 film.
He cast his
Sense and Sensibility co-stars Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet in the two films he directed - 1997's
The Winter Guest starred Emma Thompson, 2014's
A Little Chaos starred Kate Winslet in an ensemble cast that included himself.
Alan Rickman is survived by his wife Rima Horton.