<> on August 7, 2013 in Locarno, Switzerland.
For millennials, actor Christopher Lee is synonymous with Saruman, the corrupted wizard who served as a secondary villain in the Lord of the Rings films. To be sure, Saruman was some of Lee’s best work, allowing him to stretch his epic Shakespearean muscles on the big screen for a generation that might not be familiar with the many stages of his long career. Over the course of 80 years Lee had been the star of countless films and plays taking on every conceivable type of character. His death yesterday, at the age of 93, prompted an outpouring of sympathy and fond memories from fans, friends, and admirers online.
Lord of the Rings costar Dominic Monaghan remembered some of Lee’s offscreen talents.
So so sorry to hear that #christopherlee has passed away. He was a fascinating person. Threw a bic pen into a tree in front of me. #legend
— Dominic Monaghan (@DomsWildThings) June 11, 2015
Elijah Wood summed up Lee’s towering legacy as well as one could in 140 characters
An extraordinary man and life lead, Sir Christopher Lee. You were an icon, and a towering human being with stories for days. We’ll miss you.
— Elijah Wood (@woodelijah) June 11, 2015
A number of internet stars also tweeted their condolences at the loss of the cinema legend.
RIP Christopher Lee: Saruman in LotR, singer in metal bands at age 90, and British Special Forces during WWII. Few reach those badass levels
— Ian Hecox (@SmoshIan) June 11, 2015
Ugh. RIP Darth Darth Tyranus, aka Christopher Lee. You’ll always be remembered as a motherfucking badass sith lord.
— Daniel Sulzbach (@MrRepzion) June 11, 2015
sad at the passing of Christopher Lee. such an amazing actor. ? RIP.
— Will Shepherd (@shep689) June 11, 2015
Rest in Peace Christopher Lee. You had a magnificent career and you were an amazing renaissance man. Much respect.
— Jimmy Wong (@jfwong) June 11, 2015
Oh man, Christopher Lee. I don’t know what to say. What an amazing man and an incredible life. #RIPChristopherLee
— mary kate wiles (@mkwiles) June 11, 2015
He will live on in the roles that made him a legend to us. Rest well Christopher Lee.
— thefinebros (@thefinebros) June 11, 2015
Rest in Peace Christopher Lee, AKA Saruman. An amazing actor with an Illustrious career. You will be missed! pic.twitter.com/xgvV0tGQEB
— Matthew Santoro (@MatthewSantoro) June 11, 2015
I don’t want to believe it’s true, but the telegraph’s reporting that Christopher Lee has passed and that makes me so sad.
— Evan Edinger (@EvanEdinger) June 11, 2015
