Maggie Smith & Ian McKellen’s hilariously shady friendship remembered
McKellen once played Smith on 'SNL.' She joked she'd do an impression of him in return, but "people didn’t know him well enough to recognize it."
Legendary actress Dame Maggie Smith, adored and acclaimed star of stage and screen, passed away today at the age of 89. Rest in peace to a truly timeless dame.
Born in 1934, Smith was a classically trained actor who made her mark on the London theater scene before establishing herself as a formidable force on film. She received her first Oscar nomination in 1965 for Othello, one of her earlier film roles, and then won Best Actress just a few years later for her all-time-great work in the schoolteacher drama The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie.
Her other Oscar win was for Best Supporting Actress in 1978’s California Suite, an anthology comedy in which she plays an actress married to a closeted man (Michael Caine), who she famously calls f****t in one standout scene.
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Obviously it was for a role, so we’re not going to sit here and moralize about whether or not Smith could say the f-slur, but consider just how many projects she’s starred in that have been beloved by the queer community:
She played the Reverend Mother in the Sister Act movies, stole scenes in The First Wives Club, was in the camp-tastic Clash Of The Titans and Merchant & Ivory’s gorgeous A Room With A View, delivered killer performances in whodunits like Evil Under The Sun and Gosford Park, schooled us all as Professor McGonagall in the Harry Potter series (shame we’ll never know who wrote the books those movies were based on!), and was the ultimate H.B.I.C. as Downton Abbey‘s Dowager Countess.
Yes, Dame Maggie Smith has given the gays so, so much, and we’ll always love her for that.
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But there’s one gay in particular who Smith had a very special relationship with, and that’s her fellow thespian and longtime friend Sir Ian McKellen.
A classic “a girl and her gay” relationship, the two had a playful bond that has been an utter joy to watch over the decades, one built on an easy camaraderie and a willingness to always drag one another trough the mud. With love, of course.
It’s unclear when Smith and McKellen first met, but we suppose when you’re two of the most talented actors in the world you tend to run in the same circles. Case in point, the earliest photo of them together (at least on Getty Images) is from the 1983 Evening Standard Theatre Awards, a ceremony in which both have been awarded top honors on multiple occasions.
The two finally had the opportunity to act opposite one another in 1995’s Richard III, which adapted the classic William Shakespeare play to tell a story of rising fascism in 1930s Britain. McKellen played the titular role, while Smith’s was unforgettable in a smaller part that let her do what she does best: Read people for filth.
Speaking of reading, the friends had a hell of a time throwing shade at one another when they both found themselves competing for Oscars during the 2002 awards season. McKellen was up for Supporting Actor for his work as Gandalf in the first Lord Of The Rings movie, while Smith was a Supporting Actress nominee for Gosford Park.
That March, McKellen hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live in which he made an appearance at the Weekend Update desk to offer Oscar predictions… in drag as Maggie Smith. Honestly, the impression is spot-on, and in the short segment McKellen managed to delightfully lampoon his dear friend, himself, their mutual pal Dame Judi Dench, and even a young Jimmy Fallon (the whole bit climaxed in a passionate kiss between the two). It’s very much worth a watch:
Then, a few years back, McKellen popped by The Graham Norton Show and recalled a hilarious interaction with Smith from that very Oscar night. Prior to the ceremony, he had shown his friend a pendant—a traditional pounamu from New Zealand, where LOTR was filmed—he was wearing for good luck. Smith acknowledged it, and then they went their separate ways for the show.
Afterwards, when they both had lost, McKellen remembers Smith walking up to him, pointing at the pendant, and offering a withering, “Didn’t work, did it?” (McKellen, again, delivers a pitch-perfect Smith in the clip below.)
When The Evening Standard asked Smith about McKellen’s frequent impressions of her, she had an absolutely brutal response: “He does them all the time. I rather acidly told him that I’d done one of him but people didn’t know him well enough to recognize it.” Oooh, burn!
But it’s all in good fun, of course. They really were birds of a feather, and as much as we loved hearing about their witty back-and-forths, we also just adored seeing them rooting for the same team.
For instance: We’ll never forget July 12, 2017, also known as the day Smith and McKellen went to watch some tennis together at Wimbledon. There are so many photos of the two sitting side-by-side in the stands that you almost forget there was an actual match going on!
No, the real event was off the court, where these two legends were serving true friendship goals.
In the wake of Smith’s passing, stars have been sharing sweet messages in remembrance of this acting titan, from Daniel Radcliffe to Viola Davis. McKellen, who is still quite active on social media, is no doubt in mourning and—as of writing—has not shared any messages about his late friend. But, when he does, we’re sure it’ll be a touching, heartfelt tribute to a one-of-a-kind talent.
The legacy of the great Dame Maggie Smith lives, through her unparalleled screens performances, and her unforgettable friendship with a fellow icon.
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