PEOPLEHappy birthday, Sir Ian McKellen! His life in picturesUSA TODAYSir Ian McKellen turns 82 on May 25, 2021. To celebrate, we look back at his life in pictures. Here, Kevin Kline, Jane Lapotaire, Lauren Bacall and Ian McKellen, the winners of best actor and actress for musical and drama, post at the Tony Awards presentation show in New York, on June 7, 1981. McKellen was named best actor in a drama for his work in "Amadeus."APMcKellen, 42, in “Amadeus” on Broadway on July 30, 1981.Suzanne Vlamis, APIn 1986, McKellen appeared in “Wild Honey” at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles.Reed Saxon, APJudi Dench was congratulated by McKellen on Jan. 25, 1988 for winning the 1987 Laurence Olivier Award as best actress of the year for her performance in "Antony and Cleopatra" at the Victoria Palace Theater in London.Bob Dear, APMcKellen in "An Enemy of the People" directed by Trevor Nunn in 1998.John HaynesMcKellen during a portrait shoot in New York on Dec. 5, 2001.Todd Plitt, USA TODAYMcKellen, who played Gandalf the Grey in "The Lord of the Rings," handedover an autographed Gandalf figure to a young fan on Jan. 19, 2002.Sebastian Artz, Getty ImagesMcKellen held a portrait of himself on Feb. 22, 2002, during the unveiling of the painting by artist Clive Smith at the National Portrait Gallery in London.Sion Touhig, Getty ImagesHe and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos posed for photographers as they arrived at the world premiere of "X-Men 2" on April 24, 2003, in London.Scott Barbour, Getty ImagesMcKellenwavedto the crowd on the red carpet before the world premiere of the "Return Of The King," the third film in the "Lord Of The Rings" trilogy, in Wellington, New Zealand on Dec. 1, 2003.Phil Walter, Getty ImagesMcKellen during portrait session in Los Angeles on Dec. 5, 2003.Dan Macmedan, USA TODAYMcKellen hosted a private screening of "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" at Planet Hollywood for the New York Essay Grand Prizewinner on Dec. 23, 2003, in New York.Mark Mainz, Getty ImagesHe exited the site of London's first purpose built playhouse, called The Theatre, built in 1576 in east London, after his visit on March 19, 2009. McKellen visited the site of what some scholars say is Shakespeare's first theater, which has been uncovered by Museum of London archaeologists.Lefteris Pitarakis, APMcKellen during a portrait session in New York on Dec. 5, 2012.Robert Deutsch, USA TODAYMcKellen as Gandalf in a scene from 2012's "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.Todd Eyre, MGM/Warner Bros. PicturesMcKellen and Sting attended The Culture Project's "The Seagull" opening night party at B Bar and Grill on Oct.13, 2013 in New York.Taylor Hill, FilmMagicHe and Sir Patrick Stewart, left, attended "Conversations With Ian McKellen And Patrick Stewart" at John L. Tishman Auditorium at University Center on Jan. 28, 2014 in New York.Charles Norfleet, FilmMagicMcKellen as Sherlock Holmes in2014's"Mr. Holmes.Giles Keyte, Miramax And RoadsidMcKellen during a portrait session in New York on June 26, 2015, at the Crosby Street Hotel.Jason Allen, For USA TODAYHeritage Pride March Grand Marshals and British actors McKellan, left, and Sir Derek Jacobi, waved to spectators and fans as they walked down Fifth Avenue during the Heritage Pride March in New York on June 28, 2015.Kathy Willens, APMcKellenshowed his "The Lord of the Rings"-inspired tattoo of the Elvish number nine as hearrived for the screening of "Mr Holmes" during the 41st Deauville U.S. Film Festival in the French resort of Deauville on Sept. 10, 2015.Charly Triballeau, AFP/Getty ImagesMcKellenattended the unveiling of his dedicated beach locker room on the Promenade des Planches during the 41st Deauville American Film Festival on Sept. 10, 2015 in Deauville, France.Francois Durand, Getty ImagesHe attended day eight of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 11, 2017 in London.Karwai Tang, WireImageMcKellen watched from the center court royal box during the gentlemen's singles quarter final match between Andy Murray of Great Britain and Sam Querrey of the U.S. on day nine of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 12, 2017 in London.Michael Steele, Getty ImagesMcKellen attended"Ian McKellen: Playing The Part" photocall during the 12th Rome Film Fest at Auditorium Parco Della Musica on Nov. 1, 2017 in Rome, Italy.Vittorio Zunino Celotto, Getty ImagesMcKellenspoketo the audience during the "Ian McKellen: Playing The Part" press conference during the 12th Rome Film Fest at Auditorium Parco Della Musica on Nov. 1, 2017 in Rome.Ernesto S. Ruscio, Getty ImagesMcKellensigned autographs as he walked the red carpet for "Ian McKellen: Playing The Part" during the 12th Rome Film Fest at Auditorium Parco Della Musica on Nov. 1, 2017 in Rome.Ernesto S. Ruscio, Getty ImagesMcKellenarrivedat Westminster Abbey for a memorial service for theater great Sir Peter Hall OBE on Sept. 11, 2018 in London.Jack Taylor, Getty ImagesFeatured Weekly Ad