Film Legend Sean Connery Has Died

2020 strikes the James Bond franchise again, and this time in far sadder fashion than any predictable delay of an anticipated film's release date. According to BBC News, Scottish film legend and original James Bond Sir Sean Connery passed away this morning; he was 90.

Although he will likely always be remembered for his iconic portrayal of the famous MI6 agent and British superspy across seven feature films, Connery appeared in a number of high-profile (and high-grossing) Hollywood projects outside the Bond franchise throughout his storied career. Notably, he starred in The Hunt for Red October, George Lucas' Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and Alcatraz thriller The Rock. He also won an Oscar for his 1988 portrayal of mafia-hunting Irish police officer Jim Malone who teams up with lawman Eliot Ness in Brian de Palma's The Untouchables.

Early reports sourced to Connery's son suggest that Sir Sean had been sick for some time, and died peacefully in his sleep in his Bahamas home. As a lifelong supporter of Scottish independence, Connery famously elected to live on the Caribbean island unless and until his native Scotland officially seceded from the U.K.

Connery was the rare larger-than-life personality who transcended even the epic roles he played, becoming a kind of pop-cultural touchstone in his own right. Despite Daniel Craig's muscular and longstanding performance in the Bond role, Connery remains the actor to carry the infamous license to kill for the longest period of time. By returning for 1983's aptly named Never Say Never Again, Connery entered his third decade as the debonair secret agent, a record unlikely to be challenged any time soon.

In recent years, Connery retreated from the limelight, retiring from acting entirely after 2003's underperforming Alan Moore adaptation, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Although some fans assumed that Connery left Hollywood as a result of that film's lukewarm reception, one of the actor's longtime friends and a fellow thespian, Michael Caine, told the Telegraph in 2011 that Connery's decision to retreat had more to do with the industry's disposition toward older performers.

"The movie business retired him because he didn't want to play small parts about old men," Caine said, "and they weren't offering him any young parts in romantic leads."

Connery is survived by his son Jason, his second wife Micheline Roquebrune, and his younger brother Neil Connery. His incomparable stage presence will be sorely missed.