Which Harry Potter character was played by Alan Rickman in the film series?

Alan Rickman played Severus Snape in the Harry Potter film series.

Rickman appeared as Snape in all eight Harry Potter films, beginning with Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in 2001 and ending with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 in 2011. Snape is the severe Potions teacher who later becomes Hogwarts headmaster and remains one of the story’s most morally complex characters.

The character’s apparent hostility toward Harry is connected to older events involving Harry’s parents and Snape’s own history. Later revelations show that his loyalties and motivations are more complicated than the earlier films suggest. Rickman’s restrained performance helped preserve that ambiguity across the series.

Rickman was an English actor known for stage work and films including Die Hard, Sense and Sensibility, and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. He died in 2016. The other major adult roles listed here were played by different actors: Dumbledore by Richard Harris and Michael Gambon, Sirius Black by Gary Oldman, and Hagrid by Robbie Coltrane.