Troy - Press Archive - Sean of the Med

Source: Film Review
June 2004

SEAN OF THE MED
by Anwar Brett

 

After becoming a household name with the TV series Sharpe, it looked like

the world was Sean Bean's oyster... but it took time for the actor to hit the

really big time with turns in The Lord of the Rings and his new film where

he plays Odysseus in Troy. Anwar Brett discovers an actor with the patience

of a saint - not least with his favourite football team!

 

Click on the thumbnails.

 

 

Where some of his colleagues on Troy will have been fretting about the size

of their trailers, or bitching about the size of their roles, Sean Bean had other

things on his mind. During the time the production shot on location in

Mexico Bean regularly took advantage of a loose network of friends who

relayed the football scores from home, keeping the dedicated Sheffield

United fan in touch with his beloved team.

 

"There'd always be someone on a mobile tracking down the results," he

chuckles. "A stunt arranger friend of mine, Eunice, kept getting texts

through telling me about 'the Blades'. That was great. I'd be listening

to her, spear in hand and then go into battle."

 

If the idea seems a little incongruous Bean at least can see the funny side of

it. And well he might, with his team challenging for a play-off spot in the

Nationwide Division One, (something he describes as "a gruelling, nerve

wracking experience") and his improving career meaning he's well set for

bigger, more challenging roles to come. The 45-year-old Yorkshireman

has successfully made the precarious leap from TV to cinema, building

upon the popularity of Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe character to play a

variety of big screen roles.

 

Now cast as Odysseus in Troy, Bean clearly enjoys being part of such a

massive production, working alongside the likes of Brad Pitt's Achilles and

recreating ancient history with gusto. Certainly he had no fears about

tackling another character in an ambitious epic after playing the conflicted

Boromir in the first Lord of the Rings film.

 

 

"These roles don't come along very often," he says, "so it's

always great to get something that sets its own place in

film history. Boromir was a wonderful opportunity for me,

and it's the same with Odysseus. They're not characters

that get lost or forgotten about."

 

It's a far cry from the limbo that Bean found his career in

when the last Sharpe adventure was filmed, a natural

climax at the Battle of Waterloo for the character and

the beginning of an uncomfortable hiatus for the actor.

 

"I felt I'd gone as far as I could go with Sharpe, but then

I didn't do anything for about a year and a half. I was

getting stuff but it was rather mediocre. I preferred not

to do anything, to bide my time and see how things went.

The next thing I did was a film called Essex Boys, which

I really enjoyed. That was a good break for me, and

then I started doing films in America playing secondary

roles which was fine - and still is - because they're

often very interesting. But it took a while to build up a

standing in film, it was a gradual process. Then Boromir

came along and things got back on track. I feel quite

happy with the way things panned out now, but it was a

hard transition."

 

While solace might have come from the team he so loyally

supports, it's more likely the ups and downs of Sheffield

United's form make his own career lulls pale by comparison.

But the nice thing about Sean Bean is that he can still get

a little misty-eyed at the thought of the team that he has

followed from childhood, the inspiration for his '100% Blade'

tattoo that has caused some confusion amongst his

American fans.

 

"They often think I'm part of some street gang, like the

Bloods or the Cripps,"he chuckles. "I have to explain that

it harks back to cutlery!"

 

There is the sense about him that while he has come a

long way he has not really changed so much from the man

he always was. Like any football supporter he carries with

him a healthy sense of fatalism that is useful in a job

noted for its extreme highs and lows. Most of all he

still gets a kick out of it, being a key part of the Greek invasion of

Troy in a rousing Boys' Own adventure alongside a cast of thousands.

 

"It was very impressive being there and very exciting to be a part of it,"

he nods. "We had some terrific guys working on the film, actors like

Peter O'Toole. Meeting people like that is lovely, it reminds you what a

great way this is to make a living."

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