Alan Rickman

Alan Sidney's Patrick Rickman was a director and actor from England. He trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and became a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, appearing in modern and traditional theatre performances with his deep, languid voice. He played the Vicomte de Valmont in the RSC stage production of Les Liaisons Dangereuses in 1985, and he was nominated for a Tony Award after the performance relocated to the West End in 1986 and Broadway in 1987.

Rickman built a career as one of history's most famous villains, from Hans Gruber in Die Hard to the erratic Professor Snape in the Harry Potter flicks. Aside from that, he was able to demonstrate his gentler side in a Christmas classic, Love Actually, and his deft comic touch in Galaxy Quest.

Rickman was a Tony Award-winning theater performer. His achievements on stage and screen, as well as his depiction of two of cinema's most iconic characters, make it simple to see why he is ranked first on our list. Sadly, as the only performer on the list who is no longer with us, his tragically cut short career is all there is to remember him by, and truly, what a career he left behind.