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British motion-picture actor, best known for his portrayal of James Bond, secret agent 007, in the films based on the spy novels of British writer Ian Fleming.

Born Thomas Sean Connery in Edinburgh, Scotland, he was employed in various manual jobs until his appearances in body-building competitions led to a job in the chorus of the London theater production of South Pacific (1951). In 1956 Connery began taking small roles in motion pictures. He played his first leading role in the film Another Time Another Place in 1958. Connery gained wide popularity as a result of his performance in the role of James Bond in Doctor No (1963).

Lead roles in five more Bond films followed: From Russia with Love (1963), Goldfinger (1964), Thunderball (1965), You Only Live Twice (1967), and Diamonds Are Forever (1971). In attempts to escape being typecast, or repeatedly cast, as Bond, he took on more varied roles in such films as Marnie (1964), directed by American filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock; The Hill (1965), by American director Sydney Lumet; The Anderson Tapes (1972); Murder on the Orient Express (1974), based on the novel by English writer Agatha Christie; and The Man Who Would Be King (1975), directed by American filmmaker John Huston. He returned in the role of James Bond in Never Say Never Again (1983). In 1987 Connery won an Academy Award for best supporting actor in The Untouchables (1987). He went on to star as the hero's father in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). Connery also starred in the popular films The Name of the Rose (1986), Highlander (1986), The Russia House (1990), Medicine Man (1992), Rising Sun (1993), First Knight (1995), and Just Cause (1995).

Dashing, charismatic, and effortlessly masculine Scottish leading man who successfully escaped the profitable straitjacket of James Bond to become one of the most beloved and respected stars of contemporary Hollywood. Connery was a bodybuilder, model, and chorus boy before moving on to repertory, TV, and film work in the 1950s. Having dropped out of school at 13, he spent much of his free time in libraries as he traveled about performing in plays. Connery beat out many far bigger (and more expensive) names to play Ian Fleming's superspy James Bond in Dr. No (1962), which made him a major 60s icon. He leavened the inherent violence of the character with his unflappably cool sophistication and humor.

Connery periodically escaped Bondage to tackle a wider range of roles in other features, such as Alfred Hitchcock's Marnie (1964); A Fine Madness (1966) and The Molly Maguires (1970), but most were box-office duds. He did some of his best work over the course of his significant collaboration with director Sidney Lumet: The Hill (1965), as a convict in a military prison; The Anderson Tapes (1972), as an ex-con masterminding a large-scale heist; The Offence (1973), as a London detective who beats a suspect to death; Murder On The Orient Express (1974), as part of the all-star ensemble; and Family Business (1989), a critical and commercial misfire in which he portrays the proud patriarch of a criminal clan, with Dustin Hoffman and Matthew Broderick as his son and grandson respectively.

Connery attempted to abandon 007 time and again but audiences did not at first support his efforts. Diamonds Are Forever (1971) marked the beginning of his 12-year absence from Bond pictures. Connery utilized this period to star in a wide range of interesting adventure films, including John Boorman's Zardoz (1974), John Huston's The Man Who Would Be King (1975), John Milius's The Wind And The Lion (1975), Richard Lester's Robin And Marian (1976), and, in a crucial supporting role, Terry Gilliam's Time Bandits (1981). Bald, a little paunchy, but still handsome and charismatic, Connery donned his toupee and returned to his most celebrated role for the aptly titled Never Say Never Again (1983). The film was a hit.

Connery followed up with the popular fantasy film, Highlander (1986) and the successful international co-production The Name Of The Rose (1986) before hitting a home run with an Oscar-winning supporting role in Brian De Palma's adaptation of The Untouchables (1987). Playing Malone, a sly and crafty old Irish cop, he easily eclipsed Kevin Costner, the film's ostensible leading man. The success of this film placed Connery firmly back on the A-list of modern Hollywood leading men albeit often in older, fatherly roles (often older than his actual age).

His renewed star shone particularly brightly in Steven Spielberg's third installment of the Indiana Jones series, Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade (1989), as the alternately aloof and irascible father of Harrison Ford. Though he is an enduring presence harking back to the stars of the Hollywood studio system, Connery is also a serious actor who meticulously prepares for his roles. He has trained extensively in movement and has claimed that he never accepts a role until he has worked out how the character should move. Connery has achieved impressive subtleties of characterization within a surprisingly wide range of parts.