by Ben “Zombie” Bedgood

     Today we bid a solemn farewell to Actor and Director Alan Rickman.  His portrayals of the complex antagonist across many films and roles have touch the hearts of geeks around the world. Whether you knew him as Hans Gruber in Die Hard, Professor Severus Snape in Harry Potter, The Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Alexander Dane in Galaxy Quest, Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd, the Metatron in Dogma, or the voice of Marvin in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, his roles spanned the world of geekdom. He passed today surrounded by family and friends after a battle with cancer aged 69.

     I woke today to find out the news through social media. The loss is one instantly felt hard in our home. Both my wife and I are huge Alan Rickman fans, just yesterday we were watching Galaxy Quest before she left for work. We spent our honeymoon at Harry Potter World in Orlando, we are surrounded by Harry Potter memorabilia in our home, and I even bare a tattoo of the Dark Mark on my left forearm. Without even thinking about it, my wife and I have started an Alan Rickman marathon today, starting with Dogma and moving into the Harry Potter movies, something that I know many around the world will be doing as well.

My favorite of his roles is his portrayal of Professor Snape in Harry Potter. It is one of, if not the most, complex characters amongst the thousands in the series. Snape has hidden agendas, emotions, and alliances that we as the viewer are unaware of until the very end. His final moments in the series created what might be one of the greatest scenes in his career, his ability to convey raw emotion through not only the veil of the film but across our living rooms, melted even the most cynical of frozen hearts.

He started his career with the Royal Shakespeare Company, moving into his breakout film role in Die Hard in 1988. Alan Rickman’s career spanned dozens of roles, his final, the Caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland: Through the Looking Glass having completed filming before his death. It is due to be released on May, 27th 2016.

The outpouring of grief across social media has been enormous from the actors, directors, and producers whose lives have been touched by Alan Rickman.  One of the most touching tributes out of the dozens I have read was from Director Kevin Smith who at the end remarked “I’ll miss him forever. Rest in Peace, Voice of God. Back to Heaven, where you came from…”

January, 14th 2016 we hold our wands high and cast a Lumos Maxima charm to honor the passing of our beloved professor, the conflicted anti-hero that was Alan Rickman. He is survived by his wife Rima Horton. You will truly be missed. Your legacy will burn on through the night. May our tears carry the memories of how you touched our hearts. Be at peace now as the Thestral’s take you home to Lily. Know that our love for you will burn “Always”…