It’s easy to look at celebrities and think they haven’t actually had to struggle at all to get to where they are, but Pierce Brosnan is another story.
Pierce never had it easy from the start, and he had to overcome a lot to get to where he is. He overcame being abandoned, a tumultuous childhood, and the loss of his first wife and daughter.
Pierce entered the world on May 16th, 1953. He was born in Ireland, but his father up and walked out on him and his mother not long after he was born.
When Pierce was no more than a toddler, his mother decided to move to London so she could get a job working as a nurse in an effort to better provide for their little family of 2. He was 4-years-old.
Pierce didn’t move to London along with his mother though; he went to live with his mother’s parents (his grandparents). After the death of both of his grandparents, he bounced around a lot to a few different relatives before landing at a lodging house with local workers from the mills.
He saw his mother very infrequently until she remarried and moved to Scotland.
By then, it was 1964 and Pierce went to live with his mother and new step-father in East Lothian. Not long after that, his mother and step-father moved back to London, and he went with them.
Having spent his entire life so far in the country, moving to London proved to be difficult for Pierce. Life in such a major city couldn’t have been more opposite than the life he left behind in Ireland, and his classmates were far from welcoming of him.
He decided to drop out of school by the time he hit 16 to try to find himself and make his way in the world.
Pierce ended up discovering his passion for theatre and began acting after a short stint working as a commercial artist. His mother encouraged him to follow his dreams.
His career truly started at The Oval House Theatre, though it would take him some time to be a success. Pierce’s first breakout role was in 1977. He starred in a play called The Red Devil Battery Sign.
Around this time, Pierce ended up meeting his first wife, actress Cassandra Harris. The two tied the knot in 1980.
In 1981, the James Bond film that Cassandra had starred in, For Your Eyes Only, was released and it was something that changed the trajectory of Pierce’s career forever.
Cassandra introduced Pierce to Albert Romolo Broccoli, the director of For Your Eyes Only, and Albert liked Pierce so much he would go on to make him James Bond a few years later.
LOS ANGELES – JULY 12: Actor Pierce Brosnan poses for a photo on July 12, 1995 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Grecco).
Pierce and Cassandra moved to California in 1982, along with Cassandra’s children from a previous marriage, Christopher and Charlotte. This same year, Pierce landed a role in the NBC series Remington Steele.
In 1983, Pierce and Cassandra had their son Sean together. In 1986, Pierce officially adopted Christopher and Charlotte after their own biological father (and Cassandra’s ex) passed.
When 1987 rolled around, Pierce’s time on Remington Steele came to an end, and he began picking up roles in several different movies, including Mrs. Doubtfire, which was released in 1993.
Cassandra was sadly not around to see Pierce in all of his new roles, as she died in 1991 after battling ovarian cancer for 4 years (Charlotte passed in 2013 following a diagnosis of ovarian cancer as well).
It was 1994 when Pierce was officially named as the new James Bond, after being previously forced to decline the role while he was still under contract for Remington Steele.
LOS ANGELES – JULY 12: Actor Pierce Brosnan poses for a photo on July 12, 1995 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Grecco).
Pierce met his second wife Keely Smith and got married to her in 1994 after they met while in Cabo San Lucas.
Keely was around to support Pierce as he starred as James Bond in GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough, and Die Another Day.
Pierce and Keely also celebrated the birth of their sons throughout the James Bond films that Pierce was in. The couple had Dylan in 1997 and Paris in 2001.
Pierce is forever famed as one of the best actors to ever play 007, and he’s certainly the best-looking one judging by these photos.
Pierce was James Bond from 1995 to 2002, before he was unceremoniously fired.
LOS ANGELES – JULY 12: Actor Pierce Brosnan poses for a photo on July 12, 1995 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Grecco).
Half-siblings and producers Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli called up Pierce and promptly fired him as James Bond.
He had no warning. It was 2004, and Pierce was thrilled to return to the set and work on Casino Royale, but he was blindsided to learn he wouldn’t be coming back.
Pierce discussed in a book titled Some Kind of Hero: The Remarkable Story of the James Bond Films how it all unfolded and that Barbara cried on the other line as he was fired.
“Michael was stoic and he said, ‘You were a great James Bond. Thank you very much’ and I said, ‘Thank you very much. Goodbye.’ “That was it. I was utterly shocked and just kicked to the curb with the way it went down.”
Pierce was ultimately replaced with Daniel Craig in Casino Royale and that was the end of his 007 days.
Despite being let go in such an unexpected way, Pierce maintains everything turned out alright in the end.
LOS ANGELES – JULY 12: Actor Pierce Brosnan poses for a photo on July 12, 1995 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Grecco).
Although he was no longer James Bond, Pierce was able to continue thriving as an actor. Being let go didn’t slow him down one bit.
Pierce not only continued to star in more movies, but he also started to produce them as well. Pierce also cofounded Irish DreamTime, a production company currently based in Los Angeles.
It’s now been nearly two decades since Pierce played James Bond, and many have still wondered if he would ever return to the role that made him a household name.
That question was actually popped to Pierce last year while filming a GoldenEye live watch along with Esquire UK.
Pierce said that he would be open to returning to the Bond movies if he could play as one of the villains. Hopefully, that happens!
You can learn more about Michael, the incredible photographer who took these photos of Pierce, on his website here!
LOS ANGELES – JULY 12: Actor Pierce Brosnan poses for a photo on July 12, 1995 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Grecco).
