Watch Sir Ian McKellen Do a Spot-On Impression of Friend Maggie Smith Teasing Him at the Oscars

Mar. 15, 2025

Sir Ian McKellen (left), Dame Maggie Smith.Photo:Frank Trapper/Corbis via Getty Images; SGranitz/WireImage

Frank Trapper/Corbis via Getty Images; SGranitz/WireImage

Dame Maggie Smithwill be remembered for her incomparable skills on screen, but also for how she made people laugh.

In a February 2017 appearance onThe Graham Norton Show,Sir Ian McKellenrecalled running into Smith on the red carpet ahead of the 2002 Academy Awards.

McKellen was there alongside the cast ofThe Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor his role as Gandalf, while Smith was nominated Best Supporting Actress for her role as Constance Trentham inGosford Park.

“In New Zealand, where we filmedLord of the Rings, if you’re lucky, when you leave, you’re given a piece of green stone, carved. You wear it often enough, and your chances are you’ll get back to New Zealand,” McKellen explained.

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“That was the idea, and that it’ll give you a little bit of luck. So when the film was nominated for something like 20 Oscars that night, everybody from New Zealand was wearing the green stone, the pounamu.”

He went on to explain he was wearing his that night when he ran into Smith, immediately breaking into an imitation of the actress' distinct way of speaking.

“What’s that thing around your neck?” he imitated her asking, to which the audience erupted in laughter.

Ian McKellen and Maggie Smith in September 1983.William Lovelace/Mirrorpix via Getty Images

William Lovelace/Mirrorpix via Getty Images

“It’s my pounamu, Maggie,” he replied, to which she said asked what it was for. He explained and Smith seemed skeptical when they parted ways for the night.

“So, you know, it lasts for 3½, 4 hours. And then the end, of course, everyone else wins the Oscar apart from you. And a bit dejected, you come out and you’re looking forward to a drink, and you bump into Maggie Smith and she points at you and says, ‘Didn’t work, did it?’ "

Sir Ian McKellen and Dame Maggie Smith in November 2018.David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images

David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank the wonderful staff at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their care and unstinting kindness during her final days,” Stephens and Larkin added.

The brothers concluded, “We thank you for all your kind messages and support and ask that you respect our privacy at this time.”

source: people.com