Maggie Smith says her 'Harry Potter' and 'Downton Abbey' roles weren't 'satisfying'
Maggie Smith is best known recently for her work on "Downton Abbey" and the "Harry Potter" films, but if you ask the English acting titan, those roles weren't "satisfying" to her.
The 84-year-old Oscar winner, however, is still thankful for the big- and small-screen roles that have helped her achieve international success.
"I am deeply grateful for the work in 'Potter' and indeed, 'Downton,' but it wasn’t what you’d call satisfying," she told the U.K.'s ES Magazine Thursday.
Why? Because she "didn't really feel I was acting in those things."
Smith portrayed Professor Minerva McGonagall, head of Gryffindor House and later headmistress of Hogwarts, in seven out of eight of the "Harry Potter" films from 2001 to 2011.
She went on to play Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham, in "Downton Abbey" for the series' six-season run from 2010-2015 and reprised her role in the feature film in 2019. Smith won a Golden Globe and three Emmys for her work on the series.
Review: Rejoice! 'Downton Abbey' the movie is a two-hour episode – with another happy ending
Despite all her success and recognition from film, Smith's true love is theater.
"I wanted to get back to the stage so much because theater is basically my favorite medium, and I think I felt as though I’d left it all unfinished," she told the outlet.
Smith returned to the stage this year in "A German Life," her first play since 2007.
She added that memorizing her lines for "A German Life" was "actually easier to learn than 'Downton Abbey,' because it wasn’t fragmented. I wasn’t just ordering tea or something.'"
More: How 'Downton Abbey' has changed – and how it hasn't – as beloved TV drama jumps to big screen
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Maggie Smith: 'Harry Potter,' 'Downton Abbey' roles aren't satisfying
