Sean Connery’s Only Non-James Bond Sequel Was The Biggest Fiasco Of His Career

Highlander 2: The Quickening is the only non-James Bond sequel of Sean Connery’s career – and turned into the biggest critical and commercial mess of his career. Connery played Bond in seven movies, though his final appearance was in the “unofficial” outing Never Say Never Again. After hitting something of a fallow period during the early 1980s, Connery made a major comeback with The Untouchables and went on to front major hits like The Hunt for Red October and The Rock. Perhaps having felt confined by the 007 series, Connery largely avoided sequels for much of his career.

Highlander 2 proved the sole exception to this, with this 1991 sequel reuniting Connery’s Ramírez with Christopher Lambert’s MacLeod. His return was something of a surprise to fans of the original Highlander movie from 1986 – considering his head had been cut off by the movie’s villain, The Kurgan (Clancy Brown). Since Connery was on a hot streak during this period, it only made sense to bring him back for The Quickening – even if the role amounts to an extended cameo.

Highlander 2 Is Sean Connery’s Only Non-007 Sequel And The Biggest Disaster Of His Career

James Bond became the prototype for all the blockbuster franchises that followed and was a true pop culture phenomenon. However, Connery had a love-hate relationship with both the character and the series and preferred to seek out original material once he left. He did play Indiana Jones’ (Harrison Ford) father in The Last Crusade but later declined Steven Spielberg’s invite for The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull following his acting retirement in 2003. That makes Highlander 2 a unique wrinkle in the late Connery’s filmography, being the only character he reprised who didn’t have the codename “007” attached.

According to Jonathan Melville’s making of book A Kind of Magic: Making the Original Highlander, Connery was lured to The Quickening with the promise of a $3 million payday for six days of work. Since that averages out to $500,000 per day, the veteran star cut a good deal for himself. Sadly, Highlander 2 proved to be one of the worst movies ever, grossing less than half its $34 million production budget; it currently sits at 0% on Rotten Tomatoes also.

The sequel suffered through a legendarily messy production, with the documentary Highlander 2: Seduced by Argentina recounting all the disasters it faced. The sequel was filmed in Argentina when the economy collapsed, leading to hyperinflation and a steep rise in production costs. This led to Highlander 2’s production bond company taking it away from director Russell Mulcahy and assembling the almost incoherent theatrical cut that became so widely despised. Somehow, the franchise survived with various sequels and TV shows, but The Quickening was Connery’s last stop with Highlander.

Christopher Lambert Insisted On Connery’s Highlander 2 Comeback

Highlander 2 proves it literally pays to have good friends

Connery only worked for about a week on the original Highlander, but that was enough for him to bond with co-star Christopher Lambert. When it came time to mount a sequel, Lambert had reservations about the story being planned, including the reveal that the immortals were really aliens from Planet Zeist. Thus, Lambert had several conditions for signing on, which included a return appearance by Connery. This required some inelegant screenwriting that explained that after MacLeod and Ramírez dipped their fingers into a magic cup of alien goo, they’re tied by a bond even death can’t break.

This means MacLeod can resurrect his old friend by calling out his name during a Quickening, and soon they’re reunited once more. This works in the sequel’s favor since Lambert and Connery have good chemistry, though the explanation is so littered with plotholes it’s best not to dwell on it. Highlander 2 ends with Ramírez being killed once again, and either due to lack of interest on the actor’s part or producers not wanting to shell out another $3 million, Connery didn’t return for Highlander III.

Sean Connery Is Still The Best Part Of Highlander 2

The Quickening picks up considerably whenever Ramírez appears

Highlander 2: The Quickening is tough work, even for devotees of the saga. The story makes no sense whatsoever, it violently retcons much of the original and it’s largely a bore, despite some impressive production design. That said, Connery’s charm and charisma briefly liven up the whole turgid experience – even when he has to sell undercooked gags like Ramírez watching a bizarre inflight safety video. Despite his iconic status, Connery was still no stranger to making the occasional turkey.

The likes of 1979’s Meteor or the appalling remake of the British TV series The Avengers prove The Quickening wasn’t the only fiasco on his CV. Even compared to those misfires, Highlander 2 is the worst. Given the talent and budget involved, it’s kind of shocking just how bad the resulting film was. Not even extensive re-edits like The Renegade Version – which edited out all references to Planet Zeist – could fully redeem it, and about the only compliment fans can pay the film is to admit it’s slightly better than 2007’s unwatchable Highlander: The Source.

Source: A Kind of Magic: Making the Original Highlander, The Numbers, Rotten Tomatoes

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  Highlander II: The Quickening is a science fiction film directed by Russell Mulcahy, serving as a sequel to the 1986 Highlander. Set in a dystopian future, the film follows Connor MacLeod, played by Christopher Lambert, who must confront an ecological disaster while battling new enemies. Sean Connery reprises his role as Juan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez, aiding MacLeod in his quest. The narrative explores themes of immortality, power, and environmental destruction.

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  Highlander

  Highlander is a multimedia franchise consisting of multiple movies, TV shows, and books. The franchise was created by Gregory Widen, with the first film releasing in 1986. Christopher Lambert starred in the first four movies as Connor MacLeod and was replaced by Henry Cavill for the franchise’s reboot.