The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen was released in 2003, and working on the notorious movie is what finally convinced James Bond actor Sean Connery to retire. League was panned by critics, audiences, and, predictably, creator Alan Moore, whose disapproval of screen adaptations of his work is legendary. Actor Sean Connery also weighed in on the film's failures, hinting that it contributed to his decision to call time on his career after over 50 years in the business.
Connery officially announced his retirement in 2006, when he received a lifetime achievement award at the American Film Institute. In 2007, Sean Connery revealed (via BBC News) that he was almost enticed out of retirement by Steven Spielberg for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. However, he decided that "retirement was too much fun". Connery would make one final movie before his death in 2020, in a voice role as Sir Billi in the 2012 animated movie of the same name. Presumably the experience of recording dialog for an animated movie was less stressful than the experiences he had on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
Why Sean Connery Retired After Making The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Sean Connery's health had played a small role in his decision to officially retire in 2006, as the actor cited successful surgery to remove a tumor on his kidney at the AFI ceremony. However, it's widely accepted, although never officially confirmed, that the main reason for Connery's retirement was his experience on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Connery did not get on with his director, Stephen Norrington, whom he variously described as "insane" and a "lunatic". Actor and director regularly clashed on set, and later interviews with Connery shed light on how these clashes ultimately inspired his decision to retire from Hollywood.
Norrington was apparently more comfortable working on the The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen than he was with actors. In an L.A. Times article about the movie's release in 2003, a source stated that while a talented visual filmmaker, Norrington wasn't "a people person". This clearly infuriated Connery, who told the New Zealand Herald in 2005 that he was "fed up with the idiots ... the ever-widening gap between people who know how to make movies and the people who greenlight the movies." As he hadn't worked on a movie since League, it's likely that Connery was referring to his difficult relationship with Norrington and the studio.
What Went Wrong Is The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Is It That Bad?)
The L.A. Times article suggested that the cost of putting 007 in League of Extraordinary Gentlemen was one of the main issues that it failed to perform at the box office. Fox reportedly spent a considerable amount of money to secure Connery for the movie, leaving less money to hire younger stars that may have drawn a wider audience. On top of that, production on the movie was plagued by catastrophes. Flooding during production caused the loss of $7 million worth of sets, which delayed production by three weeks, and they were also left without an effects house until the last minute.
To add insult to injury, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen opened opposite Pirates of the Carribean. Based on a hugely popular theme park ride and with a cast led by Orlando Bloom and Jonny Depp, it was the obvious choice for younger audiences. Worse still, Alan Moore fans were put off by reviews that revealed how Fox and Stephen Norrington had turned the source material into a pedestrian adventure movie. It could have been an ignoble end to Sean Connery's career, but his wry humor and outspoken opinion of the movie guaranteed that its failure still figures in his enduring legacy.
