Emma Thompson reveals that one of Alan Rickman’s best performances created the biggest issues in his career

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Legendary actor was “so fed up with people” wanting him to be the bad guy

Alan Rickman as the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
(Image credit: Warner Bros. Pictures)

Some of the biggest highlights of his career were when Alan Rickman was causing problems for the hero of the story, but according to Emma Thompson, he wasn’t particularly a fan of playing the villain. In an interview with GQ, Thompson recalled sharing the screen with her late friend, who played Colonel Brandon in the 1995 film Sense and Sensibility, and how thrilled he was to be the big bad for a change.

"Alan Rickman, God rest him, he was so happy to be playing someone heroic and nice,” she explained. "Because he was so fed up with people wanting him to be the Sheriff of Nottingham.”

Easily grouped in with some of the most beloved performances in his career after Die Hard’s Hans Gruber and Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films, Rickman was on full scene-stealing mode in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves back in 1991. Calling off Christmas and threatening to cut Kevin Costner’s heart out with a spoon, it was enough to earn him a BAFTA nomination for the performance.

Thankfully, though, just as viewers relished seeing Rickman metaphorically twirl his mustache on occasion as the villain of the piece, some of his best works also featured him as the hero with a heart. Besides his turn in Sense and Sensibility as Colonel Brandon, there were also the likes of the noble boyfriend from beyond the grave in Truly, Madly, Deeply, Metatron from Kevin Smith’s Dogma, or by Grabthar’s hammer, Alexander Dane, aka Dr. Lazarus in Galaxy Quest.

Ultimately, audiences might’ve flocked to see him play the villain of the piece, but whether he was a good or bad guy, there’s no doubt we were always guaranteed a great performance when it came to Alan Rickman. To see some for yourself, check out our list of his most memorable performances here.

Nick Staniforth
Nick Staniforth
Contributing Writer

Nick is a freelancer whose work can be found at Screen Rant, The Digital Fix, and Looper. He loves movies, TV, DC, and Marvel. He also believes that the best Robin Hood is still a talking fox.

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