Key figure behind 'Harry Potter' films Stuart Craig dies at 83

Stuart Craig, known for his work on globally acclaimed Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts films as well as Gandhi, Dangerous Liaisons and Notting Hill, has passed away at the age of 83.

The Oscar-winning production designer breathed his last over the weekend following a long battle with Parkinson’s disease.

His fellow production designer and art director Neil Lamont announced his death via a Facebook post from the British Film Designers Guild account.

"A true gentleman, with grace, kindness and humility," Lamont wrote in a tribute on Sunday, September 7. "Stuart was very generous with his time and advice, always taking the time to share his knowledge and support those around him."

"I bet that anyone you ask, ‘which designer would you like to work with the most’ the answer 100 [percent] would be Stuart Craig, and anyone who met him will remember their encounter forever," he added.

Craig began working as a set designer in the film industry in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He bagged his first role as a production designer on the 1980 sci-fi thriller Saturn 3.

The following year, he earned his first Oscar nomination for 1980’s The Elephant Man. Three years later Craig took home his first Academy Award for his set design work on the 1982 biographical drama Gandhi.

In addition to several more Oscar nominations for the Harry Potter movies, he received two more Academy Award wins for Dangerous Liaisons and The English Patient.

Craig was the creative mind who brought the magical worlds of the record-breaking Harry Potter film franchise to life through his sets in all eight movies.