Daniel Radcliffe’s rise to stardom as Harry Potter is a tale deeply intertwined with the legendary Dame Maggie Smith, who recently passed away at 89. Although the wizarding school of witchcraft and magic earned him widespread stardom, he landed the role of a lifetime thanks to Smith’s recommendation. Smith, who portrayed Professor McGonagall, spotted his potential while working with him in David Copperfield.
Following the saddening death of Smith, Radcliffe reminisced about the early days when she nurtured him throughout his journey into global fame. When Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone landed in theaters, Radcliffe was a fresh face while Smith was already a successful royalty, and his journey to fame wouldn’t have happened without Smith’s approval. Radcliffe shared, “met Maggie Smith when I was nine for the first time. I did a thing before Potter, called David Copperfield, a BBC adaptation–one person, no two people clapping! Don’t all join in now. But thank you, Maggie was the person who recommended me for Potter, so she’s the reason I ended up doing that.”
He continued, “I met her when I was nine for the first time. I didn’t know who she was. My parents were like, ‘Oh my god, you’re working with Maggie Smith, that’s huge.’ But I was not like a Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie fan, so I didn’t know who that was!”
At just nine years old, Radcliffe had little understanding of Smith’s legendary status as an actress. To him, it was simply a job alongside a well-known actress. Fortunately, Radcliffe made a strong enough impression on Smith for her to recommend him for the iconic role of Harry Potter. While Radcliffe didn’t fanboy over Smith, he did admit on The Late Show that he completely lost it over another Harry Potter co-star, Gary Oldman.
Daniel Radcliffe said it was Maggie Smith who recommended him for the role of Harry Potter back in 2000:
“My relationship with Maggie Smith – well, she got me the job at Potter, practically. So for anyone who doesn’t know that story, I basically owe everything to Maggie Smith,… pic.twitter.com/5NAKRXwOya
— Harry Potter Universe (@HPotterUniverse) September 28, 2024
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