Sir Thomas Sean Connery (25 August 1930 - 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was noted for his magnetic screen presence, his iconic voice, and for being one of Hollywood's greatest sex symbols, a status he maintained well into his seventies.
After supporting roles in films such as Disney's Darby O'Gill and the Little People, and war epic The Longest Day, he became the first actor to portray Ian Fleming's fictional spy James Bond in the long running film series from Eon Productions. He starred in the first five films (1962's Dr. No to 1967's You Only Live Twice), reprising the role on three later occasions with Diamonds Are Forever (1971), the non-Eon film Never Say Never Again (1983), and the 2005 video game From Russia with Love. Connery's suave and energetic portrayal of Bond, cemented the already popular character as a permanent pop culture fixture, and even influenced Fleming's later interpretation of him in the books.
Connery remained a popular and in-demand star right up to his retirement in 2003. His credits include: Alfred Hitchcock's Marnie (1964), John Huston's The Man Who Would Be King (1975), Robin and Marian (1976), Richard Attenborough's A Bridge Too Far (1977), Terry Gilliam's Time Bandits (1981), Highlander (1986), The Name of the Rose (1986), Brian De Palma's The Untouchables (1987), Steven Spielberg's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), The Hunt for Red October (1990), Michael Bay's The Rock (1996), Entrapment (1999), Gus Van Sant's Finding Forrester (2000) and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003). He acted in five films for Sidney Lumet: The Hill (1965), The Anderson Tapes (1971), The Offence (1973), Murder on the Orient Express (1974) and Family Business (1989). The Hill and The Offence are often considered to feature Connery's best performances.
Connery won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for The Untouchables, and a BAFTA for The Name of the Rose. He also recieved honorary awards such as the Cecil B. DeMille Award, the BAFTA Fellowship, and the Kennedy Center Honors. In 2000, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for services to drama.