Emma Watson pays tribute to Harry Potter co-star Maggie Smith in rare statement

Harry Potter actress Emma Watson has paid tribute to her late co-star Dame Maggie Smith after her tragic passing at age 89.

The wizarding world has lost another legend, and fans have been remembering the life and career of Smith for the past 24 hours.

Smith's sons shared on September 27 that the Downton Abbey actress passed away in hospital, and what soon followed was a mass of tributes online from celebrities and fans alike.

Now Watson has shared her own heartbreak and loss of the co-star she had the pleasure of working with for a decade.

The 34-year-old took to her Instagram Stories to share what seemed to be a behind-the-scenes photo of herself and Smith during the filming of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2.

Dame Maggie Smith and Emma Watson spent a decade together for the film franchise (Warner Bros)

The picture is incredibly sweet and shows Smith placing her hand on Watson’s face as the young actress smiles.

She wrote on her Stories: “When I was younger I had no idea of Maggie's legend - the woman I was fortunate enough to share space with.

“It is only as I've become an adult that I've come to appreciate that I shared the screen with a true definition of greatness.”

The two starred together in the wizarding franchise from 2001 until 2011, as Hermione Granger and Professor Minerva McGonagall respectively.

Watson continued: “She was real, honest, funny and self-honouring. Maggie, there were a lot of male professors and by God you held your own.

“Thank you for all of your kindness. I'll miss you.”

Emma Watson's tribute (Instagram/@emmawatson)

Watson wasn’t the only Harry Potter star to come forward with a touching tribute in light of the sad news.

Daniel Radcliffe, who played Harry Potter throughout franchise, told Variety in a statement: “The first time I met Maggie Smith I was nine years old and we were reading through scenes for David Copperfield, which was my first job.

"I knew virtually nothing about her other than that my parents were awestruck at the fact that I would be working with her.

“The other thing I knew about her was that she was a Dame, so the first thing I asked her when we met was ‘would you like me to call you Dame?’ at which she laughed and said something to the effect of ‘don't be ridiculous!’

Watson paid tribute to her late co-star (Dave Benett/Getty Images for Violet Films)

“I remember feeling nervous to meet her and then her putting me immediately at ease. She was incredibly kind to me on that shoot, and then I was lucky enough to go on working with her for another 10 years on the Harry Potter films.”

The actor concluded: “I will always consider myself amazingly lucky to have been able to work with her, and to spend time around her on set.

“The word legend is overused but if it applies to anyone in our industry then it applies to her. Thank you Maggie.”

Rupert Grint, who played Ron Weasley throughout the eight films, went on to update his Instagram profile picture to an image of Smith and himself as a tribute.