Think about the most suave man in cinema history. You're probably picturing Sean Connery. The Scottish accent, the perfectly tailored suits, the "shaken, not stirred" attitude that defined James Bond for generations. But there’s a specific archival clip that pops up on social media every few months, and it usually leaves people staring at their screens in total disbelief. It’s the Sean Connery interview Barbara Walters conducted back in 1987.
If you haven't seen it, it's a trip. It wasn't just a puff piece about his latest movie or his golf game. Barbara Walters, who was basically the queen of getting celebrities to spill their guts or cry on national television, decided to dig up some old ghosts. She confronted the man who was Bond about comments he’d made 20 years earlier. Most actors would have backpedaled so fast they’d get whiplash. Connery? He doubled down.
The Playboy Ghost of 1965
To understand why Walters brought it up, you have to go back to a 1965 Playboy interview. At the height of his Bond fame, Connery told the magazine that he didn't think there was anything "particularly wrong" with hitting a woman. He even specified that he didn't recommend a clenched fist—an open-handed slap was his "justified" method if a woman was being, in his words, "a bitch" or "hysterical."
Fast forward to 1987. Connery is older, more distinguished, and sitting across from Walters for an ABC special. Most people figured he’d say he was young and foolish back then. Instead, when Walters asks if he remembers saying it’s okay to slap a woman, he looks her dead in the eye and says, "Yeah. I haven't changed my opinion."
The energy in the room shifts instantly. You can see it on Barbara's face. She's shocked.
Why the Sean Connery Interview Barbara Walters Clip Went Viral Decades Later
It’s one thing for a movie star to say something controversial in a print magazine in the sixties. It’s another thing entirely to watch a high-definition video of him explaining his "logic" to one of the most respected journalists in the world. Connery basically argued that if you’ve tried everything else—talking, reasoning—and a woman won’t "leave it alone," then a slap is a valid "last resort."
He even claimed women are "pretty good at this," meaning they want to have the last word and will bait a man into a "provocative situation." It’s a wild watch by today's standards. Honestly, it was a wild watch in 1987, too. Walters famously told him, "Wait until people see this interview. You're gonna get mail."
The "Standing on Business" Phenomenon
Kinda strangely, if you look at the YouTube comments or TikTok threads on this clip today, the reaction is totally split.
- The Critics: Many people find it horrifying that a global icon would openly defend domestic violence.
- The Defenders: Surprisingly, a lot of people praise him for being "authentic" or "standing on business." They argue he wasn't being a "fake celebrity" and was just a product of a much rougher, different era.
- The Context Seekers: Some fans point out that Connery eventually walked these comments back in 2006, stating that "no level of abuse against women is ever justified."
The Complicated Legacy of 007
There's no way to talk about the Sean Connery interview Barbara Walters did without mentioning his first wife, Diane Cilento. In 2006, she released an autobiography alleging that Connery had been physically and mentally abusive during their marriage. Connery denied those specific allegations, but it’s hard for many to separate the man from the "open-handed slap" philosophy he defended for decades.
It creates this weird tension for fans. You want to love The Hunt for Red October or The Untouchables. You want to admire the guy who became a Knight of the Realm. But then you see him tell Barbara Walters that hitting a woman is "absolutely right" if she’s being "bloody-minded," and it’s a lot to process.
What Really Happened After the Interview?
Walters was right; he did get mail. But it didn't end his career. In fact, 1987 was the same year he won an Oscar for The Untouchables. It seems the public in the late eighties was much more willing to separate the "tough guy" persona from the actual views of the actor.
It wasn't until much later, around the time of his death in 2020 and Walters’ death in 2022, that the clip became a permanent fixture of internet discourse. It serves as a reminder of how much the cultural "line" has moved. What was a shocking but survivable gaffe in the eighties is now a career-ending viral moment in the 2020s.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Historians
If you're digging into this piece of pop culture history, here’s how to approach it with a clear head:
- Watch the full interview: Don't just watch the 30-second clip. The context of the entire conversation shows a man who was deeply frustrated with how the media conflated him with the "cruel" James Bond character, even while he was reinforcing that very cruelty.
- Compare his later statements: Contrast the 1987 Walters interview with his 2006 interview with The Times of London. People change, or at least their public-facing PR strategies do.
- Read Diane Cilento's Memoir: For a different perspective on the man behind the Bond myth, My Nine Lives offers a sobering look at their marriage.
- Acknowledge the era: You don't have to excuse the behavior to recognize that the 1960s and 1980s operated on a completely different moral frequency regarding domestic issues.
The Sean Connery interview Barbara Walters moment remains one of the most honest—and uncomfortable—celebrity encounters ever aired. It’s a case study in how fame, masculinity, and journalism collided in a way we rarely see anymore.
To dig deeper into how public perception of classic Hollywood stars has shifted, you might want to look at archival interviews of other contemporaries like John Wayne or Marlon Brando, who often faced similar "unfiltered" questioning from journalists like Walters.