Sean Connery Sean Connery Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930) is a retired Scottish actor and producer, who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards, one of them being a BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award and three Golden Globes, including the Cecil B. DeMille Award and a Henrietta Award. Connery was the first actor to portray the character James Bond in film, starring in seven Bond films, between 1962 and 1983. In 1988, Connery won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in "The Untouchables". His film career also includes such films as "Marnie", "The Name of
The Silence of the Lambs (film) Mob", Demme's first choice for the role of Starling was Michelle Pfeiffer, who turned it down, later saying, "It was a difficult decision, but I got nervous about the subject matter". Still not convinced, he went to Meg Ryan who rejected it as well for its gruesome themes and then to Laura Dern, of whom the studio was skeptical as not being a bankable choice. As a result, Foster was awarded the role due to her passion towards the character. For the role of Dr. Hannibal Lecter, Demme originally approached Sean Connery. After the actor turned it down, Anthony Hopkins