A giant loss. Robbie Coltrane, the Scottish-born comic and actor known best known for playing Hagrid in the Harry Potter films, has died at 72. His agency WME shared the news in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.
Born in Scotland on Mar. 30, 1950, the Glasgow native studied art before taking on stand-up comedy when he was able to make it with paintings. His birth name was Anthony Robert McMillan, but he took up the stage moniker Coltrane after famed jazz musician John Coltrane.
He then made his way to TV, with appearances in Flash Gordon, Blackadder, and Keep It in the Family.
Robbie became part of Harry Potter history when he was cast as Rubeus Hagrid in 2001’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. He would appear in each of the 8 movies, in addition to the short film Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure.
Other beloved roles included the British crime series Cracker, which ran from 1993 to 2006, and a two-picture stint in the James Bond world. He also wrote an autobiography and starred in a series about his drive across America from Los Angeles to New York City in a classic 1951 Cadillac.
Here, the star appears at the London premiere for the very final Harry Potter, Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows: Part 2. He looked super handsome in a blue suit with a clean-shaven face.
There are so many things to remember Robbie by. See photos from his whole career here.
