Silver screen’s ultimate has-Bean
Sean Bean is as famous for his rugged looks and thick northern British accent as the many creative ways in which he dies on screen.
He’s been stabbed, shot, chased off a cliff, tossed off a satellite dish, beheaded, exploded, killed by arrows, and drawn and quartered in everything from the Bond movie Goldeneye to Game of Thrones and The Lord of the Rings.
For his new series, the Yorkshirebred actor shockingly makes it to the end of the season. In The Oath, on Crackle, Bean plays the imprisoned patriarch of a gang of rogue cops. It’s a brooding, dark and violent look at how corrosive corruption can be.
Bean, 58, talks with the Associated Press about the new series, his many deaths and why he’s pleased he’s left his mark on Game of Thrones long after losing his head.
AP: This is another tightly wound, sinister character. What attracts you to them?
Bean: I guess when your character is in darkness or is very cerebral and contained, you don’t have to learn as many lines. (Laughs.) They do actually tend to be men-of-not-manywords-sort of characters — I quite like that.
AP: The series is shot in Puerto Rico and had to contend with Hurricane Maria in September. The cast The Oath. and crew returned to finish filming after that monster storm. Was it hard?
Bean: I’d been gone about three weeks when I started picking it up on the news report. I know it gets storms in that part of the world but I never thought it would be as bad as that. I thought about the people there who welcomed us with open arms.
AP: Is there a second season in the works and are you a part of it?
Bean: Well, I don’t die in it. Well, maybe I shouldn’t tell you. You know, everyone expects me to die, don’t they? I think there’s talk of it. I think they’re seeing how it goes down.
AP: Can we talk about your many deaths? Does it affect your choices?
Bean: I don’t mind. I remember Sean Connery once said that he doesn’t like dying in films. He doesn’t think it’s a good vibe or good karma. So I don’t know where that leaves me. I can understand that but I’ve done it so many times. It’s not intentional . . . but they’ve all been quite memorable. It’s a surprise when I survive.
AP: It seems like many directors leave [your accent] alone.
Bean: Unless there’s a reason to change it, I usually use how I speak now. Not too broad. It suits the characters that I play, many of them anyway. Certainly it suited Ned Stark. We did the read-through and the producers and directors and writers said, “Just talk like that, Sean. What do you think?” I said, “Yeah, all right.” But then everybody who came after was part of the Stark family who had to adopt a Yorkshire accent.
AP: Speaking of Game of Thrones we know Stark had a swift and grisly end. But have you noticed that your story line is still the dominant one? Does that please you?
Bean: It’s wonderful to be still mentioned because the character made such a big impact in the first season. He was one of a very few good men. They’re all such backstabbers. He kind of stood out as a man with principles and morals and a good heart. That’s probably one of the reasons he didn’t survive. He wasn’t devilish enough. — AP