Christopher Lee Iconic Hollywood actor passes away at 93

Sir Christopher Lee best known for his classic portrayal of the Count Dracula has passed away at the age of 93.

He died on on Sunday morning, June 6, 2015 at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London, according to sources.

The news was held back for several days because his wife wanted to tell his family members first. Lee was married to his wife for fifty years.

Lee's most famous role is Dracula which is regarded as the best portrayal of the vampire. He started his movie career two years after the Second World War in 1947. He went on to have a fruitful relationship with the studio Hammer.

During his shooting of Dracula, Lee was frustrated because he wasn't pleased with the character of the vampire. "They gave me nothing to do! I pleaded with Hammer to let me use some of the lines that Bram Stoker had written. Occasionally, I sneaked one in. Eventually I told them that I wasn’t going to play Dracula any more. All hell broke loose" he told Total Film in 2005.

Christopher Lee was knighted in 2009 and was awarded the Bafta fellowship in 2011. Lee continued acting in iconic movies such as playing a Bond villain in 1974’s The Man with the Golden Gun, Saruman in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and then as Count Dooku in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones and Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.