As a fan of the Harry Potter movies, I feel inclined to say that there are a lot of characters that deserve the spotlight on them for their amazing moments and big scenes that either make you scream, cry, cheer, or all of the above. And one of those characters for me is the famous Severus Snape, the man, the myth, the legend, played by the great Alan Rickman.
However, with eight movies, and plenty of iconic moments, it might be hard to pick just one. Today, we are going to go over Snape’s biggest and best moments throughout the Harry Potter film series, starting from the beginning to the very end.
When Snape Was Secretly Trying To Save Harry On The Quidditch Pitch (Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone)
While it was hinted at in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone that Snape was a bit of a morally-gray character, that wasn’t necessarily revealed until the end of the film. When Quirrell was telling Harry all about his big-bad plan to get the Sorcerer’s Stone for Voldemort and trying to kill the boy, he revealed that during Harry’s first Quidditch game, Snape was the one who was trying to save Harry, not harm him.
This was a huge change, considering the Golden Trio -- Harry, Ron and Hermione -- thought Snape was the one who was enchanting his broom to knock him off, showing that Snape, despite his biases against Harry, does genuinely care about the boy in some way.
When Snape Kills The Snake During The Dueling Club (Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets)
Dueling is something that I feel was so underutilized in the Harry Potter series, but for the one scene we got of it in the movies, it was iconic in every way for Severus Snape.
In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, when Harry starts speaking to the snake that was summoned during the duel between him and Draco Malfoy, seemingly sending it in the direction of another student, Severus takes it upon himself to get rid of the snake after Gilderoy Lockhart fails to do so.
It’s a quick moment, but the fact that Snape had thought so quickly to make sure that snake was gone so it didn’t harm an innocent child speaks volumes about his character.
When Snape Tries To Protect The Trio From Werewolf-Lupin (Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban)
Personally, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is my personal favorite Harry Potter film, from the time travel with the Time Turner to its fantastic music and scenery, but one moment I love from the film is Severus protecting the Golden Trio.
It’s even better when you remember that Snape had followed them down to the Shrieking Shack moments before to confront both Lupin and Sirius and was then knocked out by Harry - he still makes an effort to keep the kids safe when Lupin turns into his werewolf form because he didn’t drink his potion that night.
The Head-Shoves (Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire)
You just have to love Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, from the combination of weird teenage feelings to the character of Cedric Diggory, there are many reasons to love the fourth Harry Potter film. But this one just makes me laugh every single time.
Severus isn’t really even one of the highly featured characters of this film, with most of that going towards Harry and his competition of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, but during this scene, when Harry and Ron are discussing the upcoming Yule Ball, Snape has just had enough of their crap and practically forces their heads back into their books to stop them from talking, smacking them several times.
It’s just so funny and shows that this man has so much sass. I wish I could see it more.
When Snape Teaches Harry Occlumency (Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix)
I can see why Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is Daniel Radcliffe’s favorite movie out of the bunch, because there are fantastic moments like this. When Voldemort starts to see his way into Harry’s mind, it is decided that Snape is going to teach Harry occlumency, a way to block access to his mind from Voldemort.
However, this ends up backfiring one night when Harry is able to break into Snape’s mind, and he sees a memory of James Potter (Harry’s father) and his friends bullying Snape as a teenager, revealing a big reason as to why Snape is so hard on Harry - due to the past biases he has with his father.
It’s heartbreaking to witness, and even worse when Snape demands Harry get out afterwards.
When Snape Kills Dumbledore (Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince)
Albus Dumbledore is a fantastic and complex character with a wild backstory that is sure to be explored in the upcoming Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, however, his end was certainly one of the memorable parts of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
In the climax of the film, when it is revealed that Draco was the one who was assigned to kill Dumbledore by Voldemort but he can not do it, Snape steps in, fulfilling his Unbreakable Vow that he made with Narcissa Malfoy. In just two words, one spell, he kills Dumbledore, who falls from the Astronomy Tower. It gnaws at your heartstrings and I’m pretty sure my eleven-year-old mind was crying her eyes out.
And When It’s Revealed Snape Is The Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince)
Throughout the entirety of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry has been constantly learning new magic from a textbook that said it was property of the ‘half-blood prince.’ Throughout the story, we're left to wonder who exactly this person was, until it was revealed at the end that it was actually Snape who owned that book, years ago.
Harry tries to use a spell he learned from the textbook on him as he is retreating with the other Death Eaters, Sectumsempra, but Snape easily combats the move and sends Harry flying to the ground, revealing that it was his own magic that Harry was learning to use. What a powerful moment and one that spoke volumes for Snape. It gives me shivers every time.
Snape’s Final Moments (Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2)
At this point, pretty much every fan thought that Snape was a villain. He killed Dumbledore, he hurt Harry, and ran away with the Death Eaters. However, his final moments of life in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 are telling for his character. When Voldemort confronts Snape as to why the Elder Wand is refusing to serve him, he believes that it was because Snape had been the one to kill Dumbledore.
Thanks to how wands work, Voldemort believes he must kill Snape in order for the Elder wand to serve him, so he does so, having his pet snake, Nagini, do as he says and murdering the man. But afterwards, when the Golden Trio arrives and tries to find a way to help him, Snape instead gives Harry one of his memories, and the way he looks at Harry as he’s dying - oof, that look gets me every time. You can tell he’s thinking about Lily. Which leads me directly into my next and last moment.
Snape’s Memories (Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2)
Always.
Come on, you cried too. It was during this moment we all collectively realized that Snape was, indeed, not a villain. After Snape passes away and Harry returns to the Pensieve in the headmaster’s office, he views the memory that Snape had given him, and it’s revealed that while Snape did hate Harry’s father, he loved his mother, Lily, always.
After her death, he worked as a double agent against Voldemort and the Death Eaters in order to protect Harry from Voldemort. Harry also learned from the memories that Dumbledore was dying and they had planned for Snape to kill him.
It’s a bombshell of a moment, one that completely turns Snape’s character upside down as we knew it and made us all look at him in a different light. And now, I know for a fact that I can never listen to “Lily’s Theme” without crying ever again.
What are some of your favorite Snape moments from the Harry Potter saga? Alan Rickman was certainly the best option out of everyone to play him, and his portrayal will forever be iconic.
