Sean Connery’s Wife Reveals He Was Suffering From Dementia

Movie icon Sean Connery died on October 31st at the age of 90. The Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade, The Rock and Entrapment star was a Hollywood titan, scoring a well deserved Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance in The Untouchables. But it’s his tenure as James Bond that most remember him for, with his combination of intelligence, style and wit making the character an enduring icon. As has been said many times over the last few days: 007 didn’t define Sean Connery, Sean Connery defined 007.

He died in his longtime residence in the Lyford Cay gated community, located on the western tip of New Providence in the Bahamas. Connery rarely left the area in his later years and his agent was under strict instructions to reject all movie offers. In an interview with The Daily Mail, his wife Micheline Roquebrune spoke about the actor’s final months, saying:

“‘He had dementia and it took its toll on him. He got his final wish to slip away without any fuss. … At least he died in his sleep and it was just so peaceful. I was with him all the time and he just slipped away. It was what he wanted. … It was no life for him. He was not able to express himself latterly.”

Roquebrune, 91, met Connery in 1970 at a golf tournament and the pair celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary earlier this year. She described him as “her gorgeous model of a man,” adding that the pair had had  “a wonderful life together” and that “it is going to be very hard without him, I know that. But it could not last forever and he went peacefully.”

Since the news was announced, tributes have been flooding in from across Hollywood. Current 007 Daniel Craig said “the wit and charm he portrayed on screen could be measured in megawatts,” Nicholas Cage stated “I admired Sean so much. His wisdom, humbleness and extreme honesty has guided me ever since I met him,” and his The Hunt for Red October co-star Sam Neill said “every day on set with Sean Connery was an object lesson in how to act on screen. But all that charisma and power- that was utterly unique to Sean.”

RIP Sean Connery.