The man who has died on screen more than twenty times (around an astonishing one third of all his film credits) has had a career spanning a diverse selection of roles in vastly different worlds. His unfortunate label of 'spoiler on legs' has slightly overshadowed the acclaimed roles Sean Bean has undertaken and he will forever be associated with some of the best on screen deaths of all time. Not the worst legacy to leave behind but it perhaps doesn't do justice to his acting ability. Hailing from Sheffield in Yorkshire, the son of a welder and a passionate supporter of Sheffield United football club, he is a true man's man. His roles could tell you that much; Richard Sharpe made him a British heartthrob, while his performances as Odysseus and Zeus affirmed his ability to take on powerful, masculine roles. However, his career certainly hasn't been plain sailing. The films he has been involved with since the opening instalment of the Lord of the Rings have largely been disappointing. Notable slight let downs included National Treasure, The Island and Flightplan, all largely criticised. Despite this, Bean's performances were always assured and certainly not the sole cause for any perceived failure of those films. Since the end of the noughties little of his work has received much warmth, but with his new role in new space opera flick Jupiter Ascending touted as being in the mould of Han Solo, he may well have found the anti-hero role that will fit him like a glove.
