Sean Connery is one of the most celebrated Hollywood stars of his generation. Apart from being a critically acclaimed actor — he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1988 — Connery is best known for playing James Bond in seven franchise films.
Connery was a bona fide box office draw, but his decorated career also featured the occasional miss. There is arguably none bigger than the action-adventure film The Avengers, which was released on August 14, 1998.
Connery took on a more unusual role in the movie, which is a big-screen adaptation of a 1960s British spy TV series. He portrayed the main antagonist, mad scientist August de Wynter, who plots to blackmail the world using his weather-control machine. He goes up against a pair of British secret agents played by Ralph Fiennes and Uma Thurman.
The movie flopped at the box office. With a production budget of $60 million, The Avengers grossed $10.3 million in its opening weekend. It eventually grossed $23.4 million domestically and $25.2 million internationally, for a worldwide box office total of $48.6 million.
Sean Connery’s The Avengers Was a Critical Failure
Three out of Connery’s James Bond films secured a score of 95% or higher on Rotten Tomatoes. This includes Goldfinger, which is his highest-rated film on the popular movie review portal, with a rating of 99%.
The Avengers, however, is on the opposite side of the spectrum. With a score of just 5%, it is one of the lowest-rated movies in Connery’s repertoire.
“A TV spinoff that lacks enough energy to spin, The Avengers is an ineptly written, woefully miscast disaster,” read the site’s Critics’ Consensus.
Connery’s own performance was criticized as well. In fact, he was nominated for Worst Supporting Actor in the Golden Raspberry Awards (Razzie), a satirical award ceremony honoring the worst movies and actors in the industry.
The Avengers was nominated for a total of nine Razzies, winning the dishonor for Worst Remake or Sequel (tied with Psycho and Godzilla).
Connery himself later offered a less-than-flattering assessment of his experience making the film, chalking it up as a learning experience.
“It taught me a lot,” he told the Tampa Bay Times in 1999. “One learns all the time; it’s like being in love. There’s only two words: the producer and the director, and that takes care of The Avengers.”
Related: 1975 Classic, Which Was Sean Connery’s Personal Favorite, Has a 97% Rotten Tomatoes Score
Source: Life – Fitness – mensjournal
