R.I.P. Christopher Lee

Sir Christopher Lee, best known to legions of Hammer Horror fans around the globe as Dracula, passed away Sunday, June 7 from heart and cardiac failure at the age of 93.

He appeared in over 250 films throughout his lifetime including the iconic Dracula flicks and gained a new legion of fans in the early 2000s when he took on the mantle of the villainous wizard Saruman in the Lord of the Rings and, later, the Hobbit films.

Lee portrayed the famous Count Dracula in seven films produced by Hammer with 1958's Horror of Dracula being the first. His take on the iconic vampire—more elegant and more ruthless than ever before—became such a classic that in one film (1966's Dracula: Prince of Darkness) dialogue for Lee wasn’t even necessary. He was able to just hiss and emote his way through the entire film. Horror of Dracula was a major box-office success all around the world and set the stage for more. But Lee always kept his sense of humor about the semi-campy films he was making. He was quoted as saying, "Every actor has to make terrible films from time to time. The trick is never to be terrible in them." And, indeed, no can accuse him of that.

Here's a look back at some of Sir Christopher Lee's career in film (he also had a robust singing and writing career).

The Crimson Pirate (1952)

The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)

Horror of Dracula (1958)

Dracula Has Risen From the Grave (1969)

Taste the Blood of Dracula (1970)

Dracula A.D. (1972)

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)