The British actor, known for his roles in films such as Harry Potter and Robin Hood, kept his fight with illness private before his death.
He passed away in hospital this morning, surrounded by relatives and friends.
J.K. Rowling led the tributes to Rickman today, calling him ‘a magnificent actor and a wonderful man’, as dozens of celebrities and public figures expressed their grief over his death.
Rickman revealed last year that he had secretly married his long-term partner Rima Horton in a New York ceremony in 2012, whom he had been in a relationship with since 1977, in a New York ceremony in 2012.
His family said in a statement today: ‘The actor and director Alan Rickman has died from cancer at the age of 69. He was surrounded by family and friends.’
His brother David, 71, added: ‘He passed away this morning. He was in a hospital at the time.’
It is not yet known what type of cancer the star suffered from , or how long he was secretly battling the illness.
Rickman, who was born into a working-class family in London, began his acting career on the stage before graduating to Hollywood films.
He became one of the best-known villains in showbiz – appearing as Hans Gruber in Die Hard, the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and Professor Snape in the Harry Potter films.
The actor’s other well-known films include Truly, Madly, Deeply, Sense and Sensibility and Love Actually, in which he played the wife of his frequent collaborator Emma Thompson.
RIP
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