The Best Celebrity Alan Rickman Impressions
Alan Rickman, who died today at age 69, was an inimitable talent — but that didn’t stop his admirers from trying. Rickman gave his distinctive voice and intonation to such unforgettable characters as Harry Potter’s Severus Snape and Die Hard’s Hans Gruber, inspiring generations of moviegoers to quote their favorite lines in his halting, impeccably accented growl. Here, a round-up of the best celebrity Alan Rickman impersonators, featuring Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hiddleston, and a response from Rickman himself.
Tom Hiddleston
The Avengers actor loves to show off his impressions, and this compilation begins with his take on Alan Rickman’s Sheriff of Nottingham from Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. If you like that, here’s a blooper-real clip of Hiddleston, in costume as Loki, imitating Rickman on the set of Thor: The Dark World.
Steve Coogan
During a BBC chat-show appearance, the versatile Night at the Museum actor sat through the host’s abysmal Rickman impression — then gave him a crash course in how it’s actually done.
Hugh Jackman
This is a dubsmash posted to Jackman’s Instagram in April — meaning that he’s lip-syncing to Rickman’s line from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, not doing the voice himself. Nevertheless, he has Snape’s sinister lip curl down.
John Sessions
Actor and comedian Sessions was a friend of the late Rickman, so during this appearance on Stephen Fry’s quiz show QI, he offered up both a great Hans Gruber impression and an excellent anecdote about Rickman at a party.
Benedict Cumberbatch
As Yahoo Movies learned in 2014, Cumberbatch will impersonate Alan Rickman at the drop of a hat. Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon decided to take advantage of this tendency by challenging the actor to a “Rickman-off,” during which Cumberbatch put the ex-SNL star to shame with his Rickmanesque cover of Snoop Dogg’s “Gin and Juice.”
Alan Rickman Responds
Safe to say that Rickman was not the biggest fan of Alan Rickman impressions. (“I’m not a habituary of YouTube,” he evasively declared in 2013 when MTV News brought up the subject.) Earlier this year, Rickman appeared on The Tonight Show and called out Fallon for his segment with Cumberbatch, above. After Fallon apologized, Rickman agreed to inhale helium and say the words “Harry Potter” — proving he was a class act to the last. Watch the clip here.
