Sean Bean
31/01/2006
Sean Bean's star in Hollywood continues to shine as he teams up with another Oscar winning cast for 'North Country'. It's the story of Josey Aimes, played by Charlize Theron, who fights against sexual harassment in a Minnesota Mining community.
Sean plays Kyle, the incapacitated husband of one of the female miners played by Frances Dormand. The film follows a string of Hollywood successes for Sean from the 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy and 'Troy' to 'Golden Eye' and most recently 'Flightplan' opposite Jodie Foster.
'North Country' is a fictionalized account of the first major successful sexual harassment case in the United States - Jenson vs. Eveleth Mines, where a woman who endured a range of abuse while working as a miner filed and won a landmark 1984 lawsuit. It stars Oscar winner Charlize Theron as Josey Aimes. The film also stars big names such as Frances McDormand, Sissy Spacek, and Woody Harrelson.
Sean's role in the movie
Sean plays the role of Kyle, husband of Glory who pushes her friend Josey to fight the discrimination in the mine. Kyle is introduced in the film as the stay-at-home partner in the relationship, sidelined some time earlier by a mining injury at the same company where Glory now "drives truck." In a traditional role reversal Kyle maintains their home and keeps a low profile - as well as taking the occasional potshots from his former crewmates - while Glory gains momentum at the mine. Then, as Glory develops ALS ( a form of Sclerosis) and starts to lose control over elements of her life, their roles shift again and Kyle takes charge. Sean, who adopts a Minnesota accent for the film, says the part appealed because of the gritty nature of the material. "It's a very moving story, very sort of hard-hitting, but very poignant tale. Such good characters. It's almost like a play. A really good piece of theatre.' Sean has been praised for his interpretation of the role by the director Caro. "Sean has such sensitivity as an actor. I'm surprised that he's played so many bad guys on screen. His Kyle is tireless and genuine, every woman's dream; a confident man who is also incredibly gentle. The relationship between Kyle and Glory is one of love and romance. Sean brings a powerful humanity to the character and his situation."
Sean as 'Sharpe'
Sean Bean is back this spring as the swashbuckling hero in 'Sharpe's Challenge', an action packed mini-series shot on location in Rajasthan, India. Two years after the Duke of Wellington crushes Napoleon at Waterloo, dispatches from India tell of a local Maharaja who is threatening British interests there. Wellington sends Sharpe to investigate on what turns out to be his most dangerous mission to date. All was not smooth running during the filming in India. Bean was so concerned at the prospect of eating local food that he had a case of 72 Fray Bentos tinned meat pies shipped out! Several of the crew came down with dehli belly! Sean was originally cast as Richard Sharpe in 1993. Like the novel on which it was based, the 1993 TV movie 'Sharpe's Rifles' was so popular that it spawned sequel after sequel, and by 1997, with 15 Sharpe films completed, Bean was one of the best known and most sought after stars in the UK.