'Harry Potter' & 'Chernobyl' Actor Paul Ritter Passes Away After Battling Brain Tumour At 54
Known for his role as wizard Eldred Worple in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and Anatoly Dyatlov in the multi-award-winning Chernobyl, Paul Ritter is no more. The 54-year-old passed away at home beside his wife and two sons after battling brain tumour.
"It is with great sadness we can confirm that Paul Ritter passed away last night," Ritter's representative said in a statement to NBC.?
"He died peacefully at home with his wife Polly and sons Frank and Noah by his side. He was 54 and had been suffering from a brain tumour. Paul was an exceptionally talented actor playing an enormous variety of roles on stage and screen with extraordinary skill. He was fiercely intelligent, kind and very funny. We will miss him greatly," the message continued.
Apart from his role in Harry Potter, Ritter was also known for his roles in 2008 James Bond film Quantum of Solace. Since 2011, Ritter featured as Martin Goodman in the TV series Friday Night Dinner. After learning of Ritter's passing, the show's creator Robert Popper paid his tributes.
"Devastated at this terribly sad news," he tweeted.?
"Paul was a lovely, wonderful human being. Kind, funny, super caring and the greatest actor I ever worked with x." Popper shared a clip from 'Friday Night Dinner', expressing, "Perhaps the fondest memory of Paul Ritter was shooting this scene with him. God he was splendid."
Oscar-winner Helen Mirren also mourned the loss of a "thoughtful actor who was truly wonderful to work with."?
Mirren said Ritter was "sensitive, intelligent and generous (and) he will be terribly missed by all the fraternity who make drama" in a statement to USA Today.
The two worked together in the 2013 UK play The Audience in which Mirren played the role of Queen Elizabeth II and Ritter essayed the role of Prime Minister John Major.?
