10 Awesome Actors Who Automatically Improve Any Movie By Their Presence
9. A Dash Of Virility And Machismo - Sean Connery
The man who brought the world's coolest super spy to the big screen starts our list off with a bang. Sean Connery has been a stalwart presence in genre filmmaking since he landed the role of 007 in 1964's Dr. No. Before embarking on his acting career, Connery was a bodybuilder who competed in the Mr. Universe competitions and a keen footballer skilled enough to get an offer to play for Manchester United. Connery declined the invitation in favour of trying his hand at acting and the results speak for themselves.
Connery's athletic prowess and air of supreme confidence caught the eye of producer Albert Broccoli who handpicked Connery to bring Ian Fleming's literary spy, James Bond, to the big screen. Broccoli wanted an actor who could instil a macho edge to the character: Connery delivered in spades.
The former bodybuilder's performance was instantly iconic. Connery went on to star in 7 more Bond films, each of them widely successful. Not wanting to be typecast, Connery abandoned the role of Bond in the early 70s and went on to star in a cavalcade of genre films. From The Untouchables to Zardoz (in a role that required him to wear a red diaper throughout the runtime) Connery is always the coolest man in the room. It's no wonder he found himself at the top a pair of polls that dubbed him "The Greatest Living Scot" and "Scotland's Greatest Living National Treasure".
Any film automatically upped the cool factor whenever Connery was cast.