I’ve been a big fan of Sean Bean ever since I saw him as Trevelyan in the James Bond flick GoldenEye. The guy carries a real power and rugged strength on the screen. At the same time he can be really suave and slick. He was the ONLY decent thing about the horrendously awful Don’t Say a Word, he was the ONLY decent thing in Ronin, he was the ONLY decent thing (perhaps along with Eric Bana) about Troy, and honestly, I truly think he gave the best individual performance as Boromir in the Lord of the Rings flicks.
From the looks of it, seems like he’ll probably be the only decent thing about National Treasure too. This guy delivers every time. Solid solid solid. On top of that he’s a good lookin dude too. So WHY ON EARTH IS NO ONE GIVING HIM A SHOT AT A LEADING ROLE?!?! In an age where Nic Cage still gets feature films, an age where DMX has several leading credits to his name, an age where Vin Diesel is considered a “leading man”… why can’t a solid actor like Bean get a shot?
You can’t see me right now… but take my word for it… I’m on my knees here. I’m BEGGING some producer out there to rekindle my faith that the industry is still mainly about talent. Someone take a script you’re looking at, and say to yourself “damnit, I’m giving this leading role to Sean Bean”. It boggles my mind that I have to beg someone to give Bean a leading role at the same time that Eminem, 50 Cent and Justin Timberlake have all been announced as getting their own movies. The human race is hopless.
I really wish that they had made The Odyssey instead of the attempt on The Iliad in the form of Troy. As a lover of Greek myth I found Troy pretty much appalling unless you thought of it as a completely different story seperate from myth and made completely from fantasy.
Sean Bean however was great I thought and made an excellent Odysseus so I would love to have seen him take on the starring role in a film based on the Odyssey…with different writers of course. They’ve completely ruined that possibility though by stupidly killing Menelaus and Agamemnon.
I saw National Treasure for the second time recently as well and of course I’m a fan of Lord of the Rings. Through all these films Sean Bean has been great and I was actually just commenting a few days ago on how he should have more leading man roles. Considering the kinds of “actors” and “actresses” they give leading roles to nowadays it seems they are getting desperate and Sean Bean would make an excellent leading man in his own movie.
Okay. I mostly agree with what has been said here. And it’s great so see the male side also praising him. Sean Bean is one of the finest actors now working.
As Carolyn said above, he can say so much with the slightest movement of an eyebrow, a gesture, a flicker of the eye. He is so handsome many of us suffer from dyspnea (trouble breathing) when we see or hear him unexpectedly. Dark, the lion he did the voice over for in Pride, was the sexiest lion I ever heard and it was all Sean. He left Nic Cage and Michael Douglas in the dust in National Treasure and Don’t Say a Word. He outshines every actor he works with and does it without trying and without making an issue of it. He is a shy, quiet man who likes to keep to himself. He is no Hollywood star out promoting himself. He delivers in every role I have seen him in and I have seen nearly every one he has done, no matter how obscure. So where is there a casting director who can see what we see and step up to the plate and give him a chance? He showed up Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford,and many others who have much bigger names (and salaries).
He is kind and patient with his fans and polite and well liked by every director or actor who has worked with him. They invaribly say he doesn’t need direction. He sees how it should be done and he does it. He brings layers and complexities to his characters that give even the most despicable villian some redeeming value.
So how much longer must we wait for him to be recognized by the powers that be?
I am SO pleased to see this site in praise of Sean. To me, there is no greater actor. I would LOVE to see a movie with him as the main lead! This man doesn’t even have to speak when he acts – every move, every gesture, every look of the eyes says it all. He is AWESOME. Please – if you are a producer – cast him NOW! You won’t be sorry – I promise you.
He is also doing a film with Jodie Foster. Maybe she will see his talent. In addition to his looks and acting talent, he has an incredible voice. He did a voice over of a grungy, nasty old lion in “Pride” but that voice made him soooooo sexy.
No doubt! We ladies have been saying this for years, and it’s great to see the male perspective written as well.
Rumor has it that he and Cage hit it off well. Maybe, hopefully, prayerfully this will open some new doors to him.
The man deserves far more than he’s getting, and so do his fans.
I could’nt agree with you more, the film industry is overlooking a truly great actor in Sean Bean, a leading role in a good film is long overdue.
Love the guy…I totally agree with you.He has everything to be a leading man. Sean for President!
I have the entire box set (wooden box set mind you) of the Sharpe series. It’s available through PBS. They have a regular catalog that can be mailed and an online catalog. You can purchase a lot of great British TV stuff featuring Robbie Coltrane, Clive Owen…great stuff.
i admit bean was good in goldeneye, great in LOTR and ronin. but check out his old UK tv work. sharpes war. lady chatterlys lover. … apparently he cant actually read, which somehow might be an advantage (he learns things phonetically apparently).
anyhow : i agree better (now) than most actors around, especially UK actors (wipes the flaw with jude law without trying).
As long as he’s not playing Bond, which is a role he certainly does NOT need to play.
I second that motion.
Now don’t be bashing Ronin…It’s a fine flick with performances from an all around solid international cast. I though that Skarsgaard was the best performance with Natasha McElone, Robert DeNiro, Sean Bean and Jean Reno just behind.
Why not a Sequal to Troy called uh, I don’t know…how about “The Oddyssey” starring Sean Bean as Odysseus?
I too am a big Sean Bean fan…
Things that haven’t been mentioned yet…
He had a solid 10 minutes in Equlibrium.
He was weak in Patriot Games, although the whole movie was crap.
Triflic
I made the same point a few months back in my own blog on The Bourne Supremacy.
http://lookingcloser.blogspot.com/2004/08/letter-to-folks-running-bourne.html
In my list of ten notes to the folks running the Bourne franchise, I wrote:
“8. Give Sean Bean a fantastic role that will allow him to deliver the goods the way he did in The Fellowship of the Ring. He’s one of the most criminally under-used actors in the business. And he’d fit right into the Bourne universe. (Hey, you used Karl Urban from LOTR… why not borrow another cast member?)”
Bean is brilliant. I agree that he would have made a better Aragorn. His performance is my favorite in the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy (McKellan’s work in FOTR is exquisite, but he loses his subtlety and compexity once he becomes Gandalf the White.) He should be greatly rewarded. Where are the wise casting agents? Where are the great leading man roles? Where is the horn that was blowing?
Sean Bean! YUM! Outside of the LOTR trilogy I don’t think Viggo has much of an “IT” factor although he’s a solid enough actor but Sean could’ve/should’ve been Aragon.
And no worries there IS a script in front of him that should pick up where LOTR left off and he’d be the lead. :)
you know, when the first lord of the rings came out, i actualy thought he should of been playing aragon.
now, i love viggo mortinson, but i think that may just be becuas ei have seen him for so long as aragon.
my first impression though, was that sean was the man for the job.
He did get a leading role in a footbal (soccer) film called When Saturday comes and also a Ganster Film called Essex Boys, he was good in both
Have you seen the Sharpe programmes made for UK TV? They are fab, and it just beams of Bean.
He is a great talent, and agreed, he rocks the Llama’s ass. Especially as a baddie, but isn’t he getting typecast all the time as the token dirty British baddie? (Obviously apart from LOTR!)
Oh, and I thought Ronin was okay…