Date Published: October 4, 2024
Time Published: 9:50 AM
Emmy awardee and versatile actress Maggie Smith has taken her final bow at the age of 89 years old on September 27, 2024. Many had been devastated, including her colleagues, by the news as they idolized her for her great role as Professor Minerva McGonagall in the renowned series "Harry Potter" as well as her other films.
Nonetheless, Smith has achieved many things in her life, being a successful actress and a colleague being one of them. However, life is full of plot twists, and for her, it's fighting different health conditions.
Having been in the acting industry since she was 17 years old, Smith has been exposed to different roles and genres, diversifying her capabilities as an actress. Ending her 72-year career recently, she has accomplished many things, including high-end awards and recognition from different people. However, behind all of the curtains, who is Professor McGonagall beyond the lens? What was her journey as an actress, and what was her magic throughout the hardships that led her into a diverse actress that we knew and loved?
HER STORY IN FRONT OF THE LENS
Life is indeed full of magic. Dame Margaret Natalie Smith studied acting at the Oxford Playhouse School and then took on the stage name, Maggie Smith, as another Margaret Smith was active in theater. Starting her career in 1952, she played Viola in Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" in her theatrical debut. Then, she began her career on Broadway in 1956 with "New Faces of 1956," playing several roles in it.
She received her first credit not on her debut in 1956 but in 1959 with the film "Nowhere to Go," where she played Bridget Howard. This role earned her first nomination in the British Academy Film, a first out of the many more ahead in her career.
Through her amazing performance as Bridget Howard, she was discovered by Laurence Olivier, a director and a fellow actor. She was invited by Olivier to be a part of his National Theatre Company and to cast her as his co-star in the 1956 adaptation of "Othello," in which she agreed to play Desdemona.
In 1969, Smith received her iconic title role in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. This amazing opportunity led her to receive an Academy Award for Best Actress. The same and the following year, she appeared in different films like The Country Wife, The Beaux Stratagem, and Hedda Gabler.
Smith took on the roles of many characters in the 90's. Wherein she unlocked many potentials as an actress and has received many nominations in prestigious awards shows like Oscars and many more.
Fast forward to the 2000s, when she continued to act and impress many audiences on stage. She portrayed Janet in Ladies in Lavender alongside Judi Dench, who played her sister, Ursula. Smith also appeared in Becoming Jane with Anne Hathaway.
She also diversified the genres she took as she took on some of the roles in comedic films like The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, which was released in 2011, while also appearing in its sequel in 2015. As well as Quartet in 2012, in which she played Jean Horton.
She played many roles throughout her enchanting career, but then she took on the role of Professor Minerva McGonagall in the Harry Potter series, where her career even more flourished and she was even discovered by many people in modern society.
She continued to act and made a remark in the industry in the following years with many more successful films. However, just like many, she's got her own plot twist in her life, and that is fighting different health conditions, which became a hindrance for her and her career.
THE PLOT TWISTS BEHIND THE SCENES
The true legend is not always strong and healthy. Throughout her thriving profession, she was diagnosed and suffered diseases, which hindered her in many opportunities as an actress.
In 1988, Smith was diagnosed with Grave's disease. It was the same year when she started filming Lettice and Lovage, a play that was nominated for a Tony Award.
She experienced skin discoloration, irritability, tremors, and many more at the age of 54. After checking all the symptoms, she was then diagnosed with Grave's disease, a condition observed when the immune system attacks the thyroid glands. She was diagnosed right after she had an injury in her arm and shoulder after falling off of a bicycle.
After the filming of Lettice and Lovage, she had to go on treatment and isolation for a year to administer the condition.
Fast forward to filming Harry Potter. Smith was discovered to have breast cancer after being diagnosed by a professional after feeling a lump in her chest. At first, she did not worry, as she assumed that it would be the same situation before when she had benign.
She then had to go to therapy for 2 years while simultaneously filming the series as Professor McGonagall. Smith said that there was a time when she had to wear a wig because she was hairless. However, while going through a "hideous" treatment, she persevered to acting in the film for the next two and final films of the franchise. She was then announced free of cancer after her treatment.
Then, in 2016, she underwent surgery for her hip replacement, which caused her to miss her nomination in the Golden Globe Awards for her part in The Lady in the Van. The same year, she confirmed that she had glaucoma in one eye in an interview with The Telegraph.
Skipping through the present year, Smith passed away on the 27th of September for reasons not stated by her loved ones.
Even though Smith had been diagnosed with different conditions, it was not a hindrance for her to be a great colleague to everyone that she had worked with. Her great character on and off the lens showed why many people adored her for her skills and personality.
A TRIBUTE TO THE TRUE LEGEND
"National Treasure," "fierce intellect," and "the best of the best" are some of the words Maggie Smith was associated with by her co-stars and the royalties, who also said that she was loved by many for her great talent as they paid their tributes to her.
Smith was known for her sharp tongue on and off screen, as described by her colleagues that she had worked with in eight decades of her career.
Daniel Radcliffe, whom Smith worked with in Harry Potter, considered himself lucky to have been able to work and share some moments with the acclaimed actress. She was also considered a legend by the actor.
Emma Watson, who had worked with Smith in the same series as Radcliffe, reminisced about her moments as a young Hermione, with which she described Smith as the "true definition of greatness."
Many actors also paid tributes and wished Godspeed to her passing. They also said that they will never see another Maggie Smith in their lifetime, proving her great impact on the industry.
From Shakespeare to Harry Potter, Dame Margaret Natalie Smith, known for her sharp tongue and fierce intellect, has enchanted everyone with her capabilities as an actress and as an individual herself. From a student in an acting academy to a national treasure beloved by everybody, her incredible name is surely a name to remember.
She had a thriving career for more than 8 decades, and despite the hardships she experienced related to her health, Smith continued to be an incredible actress and an admirable colleague for every actor that she had worked with. Being able to have worked with and watched her throughout her lifetime was truly an honor. As she closed the curtains on her life, we watched and recapped her life through statements and pictures, remembering her great impact in the film industry.
Maggie Smith's storyline reminds us that life is our own series, full of different scenes and plot twists. Through the different illnesses that she experienced, she persevered to be a memorable actress, an ideal one even. She became a paradigm for us that we can overturn the plot twists and make it our own very special scenes.
Just like Maggie Smith, let's make our own series memorable and an ideal one.
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