"Maybe I Should Stop Dying As Much": Sean Bean Candidly Reflects On All The Memes About His Many Onscreen Deaths

Sean Bean addresses his true thoughts on his many on-screen deaths throughout his career, responding to the many memes and jokes that have risen from the trend. The actor is known for his portrayal of James Bond villain Alec Treveylan in GoldenEye, Boromir in The Lord of the Rings, Ian Howe in National Treasure, and Mitch Henderson in The Martian. On television, Bean is best known for his portrayals of British Napoleonic war soldier Richard Sharpe throughout the Sharpe series and Winterfell ruler Ned Stark on Game of Thrones.

As Bean opened up about his upcoming crime drama This City is Ours with RadioTimes, discussion turned to the actor’s many on-screen deaths and the online reputation that now surrounds him because of it. While the trend had not gone unnoticed by Bean, the actor hadn’t been phased either, as he had his reasons for taking those roles. However, he did briefly wonder if he should break the habit. Check out Bean’s response below:

I realised there were quite a lot of deaths without anybody needing to tell me. It was obvious. But I was playing some great characters, juicy, nasty pieces of work, and I thought I’d rather play them and die than play a mundane character that lives. But it came to a point with all the memes and I thought, ‘Maybe I should stop dying as much.’ But it doesn’t bother me any more. And, you know, I’m not really ᴅᴇᴀᴅ!

What Bean’s On-Screen Death Trend Means For His Career

From Despicable Antagonists To More Tragic Figures

Bean’s debate about whether his characters deserved their fates is understandable, as his most prominent roles do lean towards villainy. Within his early Hollywood career, the actor could be observed taking on the roles of terrorists, backstabbing jewel thiefs, and cruel scientists, and had built up an early trend as a go-to bad guy actor. However, as his time in mainstream productions continued, he proved that his range extended beyond notoriety.

While The Lord of the Rings‘ Boromir was standoffish and lost himself in a magically-influenced bid to claim the One Ring for himself, his death was a tragedy, a sacrifice to save the others in the Fellowship. Additionally, his role of Errol in Equilibrium saw him begin to turn his back on an oppressive regime. Meanwhile, his Game of Thrones character, Ned Stark, was an example of a good man falling victim to the ruthless power plays of Westeros. As such, not every Bean death was wholly deserved, but their fates helped shape their narratives in memorable ways.

Our Take On Bean’s Many Character’s Deaths

The Actor Has No Regrets

Sean Bean as Scientist pointing at a screen in The Island

Through both his film and television career, it is hard to deny the fatal trend that many of Bean’s characters have shared. Even in examples where their fates are left open-ended, they can carry ominous tones, as seen with Christopher’s fate in the Silent Hill series. Nevertheless, with Bean taking the reputation in stride and being both proud of and unshaken by it, it appears that the trend won’t be coming to an end any time soon.

Source: RadioTimes