Maggie Smith, the masterful scene-stealing actor who won an Oscar Prime Minister Miss Jean Brodie in 1969 and gained new fans in the 21st century as the Dowager Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey and Professor Minerva McGonagall in Harry Potter film, died Friday. He is 89 years old.
Smith's sons, Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens, said in a statement that Smith died Friday morning at a hospital in London.
“She leaves behind two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their wonderful mother and grandmother,” they said in a statement released through publicist Clair Dobbs.
Smith is often rated as the leading British actress of a generation including Vanessa Redgrave and Judi Dench.
Jean Brodie brought her an Academy Award for best actress and a British Academy Award (BAFTA) in 1969. Smith added a supporting actress Oscar for California Suite in 1978.
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