Exclusive Clip: Why Sean Connery was cut from GoldenEye 007

GoldenEye 007 is one of the most successful and acclaimed video games in history. The James Bond adaptation – which featured Pierce Brosnan’s 007 – revolutionized the first-person shooter. But there’s a version of the game that also features Timothy Dalton, Roger Moore, and Sean Connery. As new GoldenEye 007 documentary GoldenEra explains through this exclusive clip…

A new documentary about GoldenEye 007 tells the inside story of both the making and legacy of the game, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. Called GoldenEra, the doc’s synopsis is as follows…

One of the greatest video games ever made, GoldenEye 007 was released for the Nintendo 64 in the summer of 1997 after two and a half years of grueling hours, missed deadlines, and an unwavering commitment to perfection.

Developed in a farmhouse in Warwickshire by a small ragtag team of university graduates, most of whom had never worked on a game before, this iconic first-person shooter surpassed all expectations and went on to change gaming forever.

Told through interviews with the very people who created the revolutionary game, along with leading game journalists and industry professionals, GoldenEra captures an unmissable moment in the history of gaming.

Timothy Dalton, Roger Moore, and Sean Connery were in an early version of Goldeneye 007

“I made Timothy Dalton, Roger Moore, and Sean Connery,” explains character artists Brett Jones during GoldenEra. “I gave them all different types of jacket so one of them had a white one on, one had a little red carnation, one had a double-breasted suit.”

Jones then adds: “I have pictures of them all because I definitely made them.”

• Read More: GoldenEye 007 remaster is coming

But in spite of Ken Lobb of Nintendo America loving it, testers voluntarily playing the game over their weekends, and GoldenEye 007 both shaking and stirring those who attended E3, there was a problem.

As GoldenEra explains, just as the game was about to be shipped, an order came through from mission headquarters.

Why was Sean Connery removed from the game?

That order arrived via fax, stating that the game couldn’t use the other Bonds due to rights issues. As Jones explains: “We had to take them out because Sean Connery wouldn’t let us use his likeness.”

• Read More: Why Daniel Craig retired as Bond

Before they did that however, the team played one final, three-hour death-match to decide who was the ultimate 007. Though sadly, no one involved has any memory of which Bond won.

That might not be the end of the story however, as Jones also reveals that there’s still one cartridge in existence that still features all four Bonds. Though with those involved refusing to say where, the location of that version remains unknown.

GoldenEra is now available on-demand from Altitude Film and Prime Video in the UK.

POSTSCRIPT: Sean Connery did eventually allow his likeness to be used in the 2005 game From Russia With Love. He also recorded new Bond dialogue for the third-person shooter.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter (quoted via IGN), Connery said “As an artist, I see this as another way to explore the creative process. Video games are an extremely popular form of entertainment today, and I am looking forward to seeing how it all fits together.”