Sean Bean (born Shaun Mark Bean; 17 April 1959) is an English actor. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he made his professional debut in a production of Romeo and Juliet in 1983 at The Watermill Theatre. Retaining his Yorkshire accent, he first found mainstream success for his portrayal of Richard Sharpe in the ITV series Sharpe, which originally ran from 1993 to 1997.
Bean made his film debut in the historical drama Caravaggio (1986) and received further attention for his roles in Stormy Monday (1988) and Patriot Games (1992). He played the main antagonist Alec Trevelyan in the James Bond film GoldenEye (1995) and had a supporting role in the action thriller Ronin (1998). Bean achieved international recognition for portraying Boromir in the fantasy trilogy The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003). Following the success of Lord of the Rings, Bean appeared in a variety of films, including in the science fiction Equilibrium (2002), the heist National Treasure (2004), Odysseus in the historical war epic Troy (2004), the mystery thriller Flightplan (2005), the action horror Black Death (2010), and the science fiction The Martian (2015).