“You’re not going to be able to afford me”: Sean Connery Turned Down Playing One of the Most Diabolical Villains in a Brad Pitt Movie But His James Bond Fame Came in the Way

Sean Connery’s legacy in film history is irrefutable just as much as his contribution to the evolution of late 20th-century cinema. Despite the era’s misgivings and misogyny, Connery remains an irrevocable icon for his role as James Bond in the franchise’s first live-action film Dr. No. His blue-eyed, broad-shouldered, and laid-back charm not only hypnotized millions but also brought the Scotsman fame on a level previously unheard of.

However, under fame’s seductive grip, Connery ended up shunning other roles that would go on to become equally iconic in the years to come. Sadder still, the actor blatantly used his fame as a tool to lord over industry producers and directors for a bigger payday.

Sean Connery Passed Up on Iconic Role Due to James Bond

Ruthless, sadistic, and diabolical, Brick Top remains one of the most exaggerated and terrifying on-screen villains to date. And none other than Alan Ford could have pulled it off with justice and precision. However, Sir Sean Connery came daringly close to bagging Brick Top despite how impossible it may seem to dissociate Ford from the role. After demonstrating an initial interest in the project, Connery asked Snatch producer Matthew Vaughn to arrange a screening of Guy Ritchie‘s 1998 hit film, Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels.

However, coming off of the success of James Bond, the prospect of playing an antagonist in a crime comedy caper must have seemed below his league. Vaughn revealed years later in an interview with Empire how his interaction with Connery went down after pitching him the role of Brick Top in Snatch:

“My phone rings one day and this voice goes, ‘Is this Matthew Vaughn?’ Er, yes. ‘It’s Sean here.’ I was like, ‘Sean who?’ ‘Connery. Interesting script. Set up a screening of Lock, Stock.’ When do you want to do it? “Three hours time. Here’s my number.’”

After a thorough rundown of the film, Vaughn recalls Connery emerging with a verdict, “That is a good film’, he said, ‘and (in a stage whisper) you’re not going to be able to afford me.” 

In the later years, Sean Connery’s Hollywood presence dwindled under the barrage of old age and irrelevance in the face of newer stars. His roles in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in 1989 and The Hunt for Red October in 1990 marked the last hurrah of his golden years before slowly receding into the backdrop of the ’90s and early 21st century. He passed away in 2020 (aged 90) from pneumonia and heart failure.

Sean Connery to Daniel Craig: Legacy of 007 in Hollywood

The first ever actor to bring James Bond to life on the big screen, Sean Connery transformed into the Cold War era British superspy in seven films spanning an arc of 21 years. Beginning with the 1962 film Dr. No featuring 007’s eponymous nemesis, Connery would go on to play the role in the subsequent movies: From Russia With Love (1963), Goldfinger (1964), Thunderball (1965), You Only Live Twice (1967), Diamonds are Forever (1971), and Never Say Never Again (1983).

Later, he was respectively succeeded by David Niven, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig. None, however, would go on to revolutionize the cinematic legend until Craig transcended the role of 007 in a manner befitting the 21st-century landscape of espionage and treason. In his 15-year run, the actor turned the franchise into a high-value property even greater than it was previously deemed to be.

In the aftermath of Daniel Craig’s retirement, anticipation soars as the world awaits James Bond’s 8th avatar in the informally dubbed Bond 26. And despite Henry Cavill being an unlikely candidate for the franchise’s next era, the mass opinion sways in his favor as his AI-generated James Bond trailer ends up with 2.3 million views, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Snatch is available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video.