The Comforting Dumbledore Quote Harry Potter Fans Are Sharing After Michael Gambon's Death
Raise your wands in honor of Michael Gambon and all of his successes.
Mikhail Nilov, Mikhail Nilov | Canva, Aeypix, Harmony Video Production | Shutterstock Michael Gambon, the Irish-English actor best known for his role as Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter movies, has died at 82 years old.
“We are devastated to announce the loss of Sir Michael Gambon,” his family said in a statement, via TIME. “Beloved husband and father, Michael died peacefully in hospital with his wife Anne and son Fergus at his bedside, following a bout of pneumonia.”
Though Gambon has achieved more than 150 acting credits — even being knighted for his contributions to the entertainment industry — the one that seems to have stuck with people the most is his role as the headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore.
Fans mourn Michael Gambon’s death by sharing a comforting quote from his character Albus Dumbledore.
Fans of the series are lamenting his death by banding together and repeating a comforting quote that Dumbledore once spoke in the movies.
“To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure,” he said in the first entry of the book series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
In the movies, Dumbledore was originally played by Richard Harris. When Harris passed away in 2002 after making the first two Harry Potter movies, Gambon took over the role from “Harry Potter And The Prisoner of Azkaban” through to “Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2.”
Despite that, readers and moviegoers alike felt a huge connection to Gambon’s portrayal and the series itself. Gambon’s death hits like a heavy blow to the loyal fans of the series, and this quote is able to provide them comfort in their feeling of loss.
On the Harry Potter subreddit, which boasts nearly two million members, several posts and one mega thread have been made to honor Gambon. Dumbledore's “death is but the next great adventure” quote has been shared several times, and so have many others.
“Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living, and above all, all those who live without love,” is another quote from the wise headmaster, who spoke to Harry from a spiritual world inside his mind. “Of course, it's happening inside your head, Harry! But why does that mean it isn't real?” was another famous quote from this scene that has been shared, reminiscent of the pain fans currently feel.
Similarly, after Cedric Diggory’s death in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” Dumbledore says, “Now the pain we all feel at this dreadful loss reminds me, and, reminds us, that while we may come from different places and speak in different tongues, our hearts beat as one,” referring to the pain all of the students felt after their peer’s untimely death at the hands of Voldemort.
Hundreds of fans posted a simple comment — the wand emoji — to mimic the scene after Dumbledore’s death in the film series, where all of the wizards at Hogwarts held up their wands to mourn and honor his death.
Though Michael Gambon is more than his role as Albus Dumbledore, this reaction from fans shows the touching impact he made on millions of lives.
Fans feel connected to actors and the roles they play, and mourn their deaths all the same.
The millions of Harry Potter fans around the world may not have known Gambon in life. They aren’t family to him, nor were they friendly in his life, but they were connected to a character that he played in a beloved series all the same.
The words Dumbledore spoke in the books resonated with many, and Gambon was able to bring those words on the page to life. He played the role of Dumbledore magnificently and helped people feel connected to the wizarding world.
Though there is often a debate on whether Harris or Gambon played the role better in the subreddit, every fan of the series mourns Gambon now, as they did Harris in 2002.
There’s a special connection between fans and the people they’re a fan of — whether it’s actors, musicians, authors, or even fictional characters in books and movies. It’s important to note that it’s completely normal to grieve their death the same as any other, so long as it’s done with respect.
According to the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, there are many reasons why a celebrity death may feel so close to fans who never knew them.
Part of it is the parasocial relationship between celebrities and their fans. We have so much access to information about their lives, so we feel close to them and feel great pride in their accomplishments. In the same way, we feel grief or sorrow when they pass away.
Another reason, which could play more closely in the case of Gambon’s death, is the feeling of nostalgia we feel for a celebrity and the impact they had on our lives when we were younger. Many of the adults in today’s society grew up with Harry Potter, whether it was reading it or watching it, me included.
Gambon’s death brings tears to my eyes because it’s a loss that I feel. I feel the loss of an impactful person who played a large role in my life growing up. I didn’t know him, but I felt close to the character he portrayed as I grew an emotional attachment to the wizarding world.
In honor of Michael Gambon, I call on everyone to raise their wands and let their memories of him live on.
Isaac Serna-Diez is an Assistant Editor for YourTango who focuses on entertainment and news, social justice, and politics.