It happens every December like clockwork. You settle in with a glass of wine, the opening chords of "Christmas Is All Around" start playing, and for a second, everything feels cozy. Then Alan Rickman appears on screen as Harry, and the mood shifts. Honestly, it’s one of the most polarizing performances in holiday movie history. While everyone else is falling in love at airports or learning Portuguese, Rickman is busy being the most "real" person in a film that is otherwise a total fantasy.
People love to hate Harry. They call him a villain, right up there with Hans Gruber or the Sheriff of Nottingham. But if you look closer, Rickman wasn’t playing a mustache-twirling bad guy. He was playing a man drowning in the terminal boredom of middle-aged comfort. It’s messy. It’s uncomfortable. And it’s exactly why we’re still talking about Alan Rickman Love Actually theories two decades later.
The Affair That Wasn’t Just "Flirting"
For years, fans tried to give Harry the benefit of the doubt. You've probably heard the arguments at Christmas parties: "Maybe he just bought the necklace and realized he made a mistake!" or "He never actually did anything, right?"
Sorry to ruin the holiday spirit, but the debate is over. Emma Freud, the film’s script editor (and wife of director Richard Curtis), confirmed the grim reality on X (formerly Twitter). Harry didn't just have a "crush" or a momentary lapse in judgment. He had a full-on, physical affair with his secretary, Mia.
Freud admitted she actually begged Richard Curtis to make it just a flirtation. She wanted to save our collective hearts. But Curtis stayed firm. He wanted that storyline to be the anchor of the movie—the part that showed love isn't always a grand gesture at an airport gate. Sometimes, love is a slow car crash you can't look away from.
Rickman played this with a sort of heavy-lidded exhaustion. He doesn't look like a man enjoying a scandalous tryst. He looks like a guy who forgot how to be happy and is trying to buy his way back into feeling something. Anything. It’s painful to watch, especially when you realize that while he's handing over a gold necklace to Mia, he’s handing a Joni Mitchell CD to his wife.
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That Department Store Scene Drove Him Insane
We have to talk about Rowan Atkinson. You know the scene. Harry is trying to buy the necklace in secret while his wife, Karen (the incomparable Emma Thompson), is just a few racks away. Atkinson, playing the world’s most meticulous shop assistant, takes an eternity to wrap the gift.
He’s adding cinnamon sticks. He’s adding lavender. He’s sprigging holly.
In real life, this scene was a marathon. Atkinson was improvising most of it, stretching out the "wrapping" process into 11-minute takes just to see how far he could push it. According to behind-the-scenes accounts, Rickman was genuinely losing his mind. He was hot, he was tired, and the filming went until 3 a.m.
That "Grr, ugh" sound Harry makes? That wasn't just acting. That was Alan Rickman wanting to go home.
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The Angel Theory
There’s a reason Rufus (Atkinson’s character) was so annoying. In the original script, he wasn't just a quirky clerk. He was literally an angel. His mission was to delay Harry long enough so that he couldn't buy the necklace, effectively saving the marriage before the betrayal even happened.
Though the "supernatural" element was cut to keep the movie grounded, Atkinson still played the role with that divine interference in mind. He was trying to be a cosmic roadblock. If you watch the scene again with that context, Harry’s frustration feels even more symbolic. He’s fighting against the universe trying to save him from himself.
Emma Thompson’s Real-Life Heartbreak
You can’t talk about Rickman in this movie without talking about the bedroom scene. Karen finds the CD, realizes the necklace wasn't for her, and has to pull herself together in time for the school play. It is, hands down, the best acting in the entire film.
But here’s the kicker: Emma Thompson wasn't just acting.
Years later, Thompson revealed that she drew directly from her own experience of being cheated on by her then-husband Kenneth Branagh. She knew exactly what it felt like to find something that wasn't meant for her. She knew the specific "hollowed out" feeling of having to smile for the kids while your world is ending.
When Rickman stands in that doorway later, looking like a "classic fool," the chemistry between them is heavy because they were actually close friends in real life. They had a "work marriage" that spanned decades, from Sense and Sensibility to Harry Potter. That familiarity is what makes the betrayal in Love Actually feel so personal. You aren't watching two actors; you're watching two friends explore the ugliest part of a relationship.
The Airport Ending: Are They Still Together?
The movie ends at Heathrow, and we see Harry and Karen reunited. It’s not a "happily ever after" moment. It’s a "we’re trying to survive" moment.
Harry walks up, Karen says, "I'm fine. I'm fine." But she’s clearly not fine.
Emma Freud eventually clarified what happened after the cameras stopped rolling. They stayed together, but "home isn't as happy as it once was." It’s a somber note for a Christmas movie. But honestly? It’s the most honest ending in the film.
Rickman’s performance ensures that Harry isn't a caricature. He’s a warning. He’s what happens when you stop paying attention. He’s the guy who has everything—a brilliant wife, great kids, a solid job—and throws it away for a piece of jewelry and a temporary ego boost.
What to do the next time you watch
If you're planning your annual re-watch, keep these details in mind to see the performance in a whole new light:
- Watch the eyes: Rickman rarely looks Mia in the face. He looks at her as an object or a problem to be solved, whereas he looks at Karen with a mixture of guilt and "comfortable" boredom.
- The "Both Sides Now" connection: Listen to the lyrics of the Joni Mitchell song Karen listens to. It’s about looking at love from both sides—the illusion and the reality. It’s the perfect meta-commentary on Harry’s choice.
- The Red Details: Look at Karen’s outfit in the bedroom scene. Some fans have pointed out she’s wearing red, matching the ruby in the necklace she never got. It’s a subtle costume choice that highlights the gap between what she deserved and what she received.
Instead of just dismissing Harry as the "jerk" of the movie, try viewing him as Rickman intended: a man who is profoundly lost. It doesn't make him likable, but it makes the movie a whole lot more interesting.
Take a look at the "Winter Guest" if you want to see Rickman and Thompson in a completely different, much more somber dynamic. It helps contextualize just how deep their creative partnership went before they ever stepped onto the set of a Richard Curtis rom-com.