British actor Helen McCrory, who starred in the television show “Peaky Blinders” and in the movies “Harry Potter”, has died, her husband said on Friday. He was 52 years old and had cancer.
Her husband, fellow actor Damian Lewis, said McCrory died “peacefully at home” after a “heroic battle with cancer.”
“She died as she lived. Fearless, “Lewis wrote on Twitter. “God, we love her and we know how lucky we are to have had her in our lives. It lit up so hard. Go in the air now, Little One, and thank you. ”
McCrory was one of the most respected actors in the UK, making his mark playing a succession of formidable and sometimes scary women.
She played the matriarch of a criminal family on “Peaky Blinders” and Voldemort’s deceptive ally Narcissa Malfoy in the “Harry Potter” movies.
Cillian Murphy, who plays the central role of gang leader Tommy Shelby in “Peaky Blinders,” set in the English underworld of the early 20th century, said she was “heartbroken to lose such a dear friend.”
“Helen was a beautiful, caring, funny and compassionate human being,” he said in a statement. “He was also a talented actor – fearless and magnificent.
“He picked up and made human every scene, every character he played,” Murphy said. “It was a privilege to work with this brilliant woman, to share so many laughs over the years. I will miss my friend. My love and thoughts are with Damian and her family. ”
McCrory also starred as a human rights lawyer who was drawn into international intrigue in the TV thriller “Fearless” as lawyer Cherie Blair, the wife of British Prime Minister Tony Blair, in the 2006 film ” Queen ”and starred in Martin Scorsese’s” Hugo “and the James Bond thriller” Skyfall. “
Actor Michael Sheen, who played Tony Blair in “The Queen,” said McCrory is “so funny, so passionate, so smart and one of the greatest actors of our time.”
The author of “Harry Potter”, JK Rowling, wrote on Twitter that she was “devastated when she found out about the death of Helen McCrory, an extraordinary actress and a wonderful woman who left us too soon”.
On stage, McCrory’s roles included the vengeful Greek heroine “Medea” at the National Theater in 2014. In the same theater, she excelled as a woman caught between a boring husband and a careless lover in “The Deep Blue Sea” by Terence Rattigan in 2016.
While many performers struggle to find fleshy female roles in film and television, McCrory has played a number of them.
“Having said that, there are a lot of things I reject,” she told The Associated Press in 2016, describing the kind of roles in which all your lines are “But what did you do at work?” “He’s so smart, darling.” “How did you do that?” “So what did you do?” ”
“Of course, there’s so much sexism in the profession,” McCrory said. “But I think you approach it in different ways, and my approach is just to move on.”
Others remembered McCrory for her charitable work, including on FeedNHS, a food delivery campaign for front-line health workers during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Helen McCrory will be remembered not only for her outstanding stage and screen performances, but also for her altruism and generosity,” comedian Matt Lucas wrote on Twitter. “She and Damian were the driving force behind FeedNHS, working tirelessly during the pandemic to raise millions for others. What an extraordinary loss. ”
McCrory and Lewis, the stars of the TV series “Homeland” and “Billions”, got married in 2007 and had two children.