Former James Bond actor Sean Connery passes away at 90

Acclaimed actor Sean Connery, who played James Bond on the silver screen between 1962 and 1983, passed away on Saturday. The Scottish thespian was 90 years old. Connery died overnight in his sleep while in Bahamas, BBC reported. He reportedly was unwell for some time.

Connery was the first actor to portray the iconic spy James Bond in movies and is widely regarded as one of the best actors to have played the role. Starting with Dr No in 1962, he played the role seven times - From Russia with Love and Goldfiger in 1963, Thunderball in 1965, You Only Live Twice in 1967, Diamonds Are Forever in 1971, and lastly in Never Say Never Again in 1983. He even did voiceovers for video game version of From Russia With Love in 2005.

Even apart from the James Bond franchise, Connery is remebered for his roles in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Hunt for Red October, Highlander, The Rock, The Untouchables and more.

The roles he turned down were equally great. He was offered the role of Gandalf in the The Lord of the Rings series, which he declined claiming he didn't understand the script. He also turned down the role of the Architect in The Matrix trilogy for similar reasons.

He went on to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1988 for his role as Jimmy Malone in The Untouchables. Connery was knighted by the Queen in 2000.

After an illustrious career spanning decades, Connery announced his retirement in 2006. He briefly came out of retirement in 2012 to give his voice to the title character in animated film Sir Billi the Vet, for which he also served as the executive producer