Pierce Brosnan is the quintessential silver fox. He is classy, a gentleman, and is known for his role as James Bond, the definitive 007 who carried the franchise from its 1995 reboot into the early 2000s, and more recently as Doctor Fate in the DC blockbuster Black Adam.
Now, the Irish actor is coming to the History Channel, where he will be hosting a new documentary series, History’s Greatest Heists. The series, which debuts February 7, traces some of the world’s cleverest heists, like the Lufthansa heist in New York in 1978; the Gardner Museum art theft from 1990, which is still unsolved; and the Antwerp, Belgium, diamond heist from 2003, which is considered the largest diamond heist of all time.
The series breaks down every aspect of how criminals navigated (for the most part) these pre-internet heists, and tracks their steps through grainy photos, video footage, interviews with experts, and re-enactments that take us back.
Brosnan, who is based in Kauai, Hawaii, also has a retrospective of his paintings from 1987 onward on view at Rusha & Co. gallery in Los Angeles starting May 13. The actor spoke with Shondaland about his artwork, History’s Greatest Heists, and how it feels to turn 70.
NADJA SAYEJ: How are you? Where are you? It's pretty gloomy here in New York.
PIERCE BROSNAN: It’s beautiful here on the north shore of Hawaii. The winds are blowing, and my chickens are being fed, and the water is just beautifully blue. I’m sorry [laughs].
NS: Have you done any painting while you’re there for your upcoming exhibition?
PB: Yes, I’m painting. I’m thinking about what it means. Some days, it feels like a great idea. Other days, I feel like it’s not a great idea. Ultimately, I’m setting sail, and the exhibition is opening on May 13.
NS: Is this your first retrospective?
PB: This is definitely my first. I’ve never done this before. There is a body of work there that really came out of one dark night in 1987. I continued painting as therapy. The paintings are quite personal. I think it’s time to let them go — if not now, when? I tiptoed into the art world here and there with NFTs, and it’s just exhilarating. I wished to be an artist when I left school. I would have loved to have gone to art school, but I went straight into a tiny studio in South London as an apprentice, as a commercial artist. The art has always been there. Thank you for asking.
NS: It’s brave to step in front of the canvas during your life’s dark moments and express yourself. Many people would keep it inside themselves, no?
PB: Some of the practice has gotten stronger, and consequently, what to paint and how to paint and what to try to say in my paintings — it can really trip you up. I just paint. I paint what I like to paint. Just like History’s Greatest Heists, I had fun doing it between the movies I have been making. I understood why they came to me with this series, the History Channel. It follows charismatic, bold, clever criminals who try to steal paintings, rob a bank; it’s just appealing. It has always been appealing to the audience — it’s somewhat the backbone of the movies. One of the spines of theatrical entertainment. Whether they’re getting away with it or not, as is most of these stories, I hadn’t done one of these before. I had watched other men do them before me, and I thought, “Okay, the timing is right.”
NS: How do you feel about the evolution of documentary shows? This one has an in-depth attention to detail. What attracted you to this project?
PB: You answered the question yourself. It was the attention to detail, and the script. And the collaboration with these folks, the cutting-edge dynamic, [and] the visuals, which hasn’t been done before. It puts me as the narrator in the set, which was different. Some of these shows look a bit odd. You can see the bleed between what’s real and not real. They really got the finest technicians and lab house in California to do this. The Lufthansa heist, the Gardner Museum heist — all of these heists were intricately orchestrated and meticulously carried out.
NS: Was there anything about the research in History’s Greatest Heists that shocked you?
PB: I remembered some of these heists, but nothing really shocked me. I have been in the movie business for too long. I have read some shocking things that are real or awful. Whether it is shocking writing or storytelling, nothing really took me by surprise. I enjoyed reading the scripts. I was telling the story. I have never really put myself in that position before. The work just flowed. For a few days, it was close to home, the studio I used for the narrations. It was a very comfortable way to create something, and hopefully it will find a way into people’s hearts as entertainment. Simple as that.
NS: What has your relationship to documentaries been like over the years?
PB: It has always been fascinating; the making of them has made them more refined. They are educational in our society. We have been fed so much fodder from the movies and in entertainment; there’s such a glut. You want to see something real and meaningful that would enlighten your life and make you inspired, take you on a journey. It’s a human endeavor. My son works with a documentary filmmaker named Thom Zimny. I’m watching [my son] Dylan [Brosnan] do archival work, and I watch my wife [Keely Shaye Smith] make her movie Poisoning Paradise, right here at our kitchen table — pushing that rock up the hill, finding the leads from the story, creating something that will be meaningful. Documentaries have always had a place in my heart.
NS: How do you feel about turning 70 this year?
PB: I feel good about it. I feel a deep sense of gratitude. I feel the wonderment of life. Time has passed, time is in the present, and time is in the future; it leaves one grasping at times of sheer joy for the present. I do what I love to do, being an actor, having work, and still figuring out who I am. It’s powerful. My 60s are passing me with — God willing, I’ll be a 70-year-old dude who is still acting and painting. This is another chapter; there is work to be done in the art world — from sculpture to ceramics, crockery, and so forth. Life. There you have it. My children have grown up, and I’m a grandfather. It’s big, beautiful, and I embrace it with open arms. Gratitude.
NS: Do you have any advice for young artists today, whether it’s actors or visual artists?
PB: Oh, heavens. Do I have advice? … Okay, be good to yourself. Don’t forget to pat yourself on the back. Get up every day, and just work hard with a great spirit of imagination and passion. Show up on time, be good and kind to people, just burn for it — whatever that burn is that you want to do. You know? It’s trusting yourself. It takes a long time to trust yourself. And have faith in yourself. It takes patience.
NS: It’s not easy.
PB: No, it’s not. I see it with my sons. I see it with myself. It’s lots of work. You don’t just get to be 70, and then you get to know it all. I have to keep working; I have to keep listening to my own advice. You know?
NS: What is an influential movie you’ve seen over the past year or so?
PB: I can talk about a film which I am an ambassador for — it’s called The Quiet Girl. It’s an Irish film. It’s the debut film by Colm Bairéad. He’s Irish. The Quiet Girl is based on a novel by Claire Keegan. It’s just very elegant, delicate, and heart-wrenching. It’s a beautiful Irish masterpiece. It’s up for the Oscars, and I wish them well from my heart.
NS: What book is on your bedside table?
PB: It’s a book that is being turned into the next film I am going to make. I’m part of an ensemble that is based on a book by an Irish writer, Niall Williams, who wrote a book called Four Letters of Love. We’re going to start making it at the end of January in the Irish town of Donegal with Helena Bonham Carter, Gabriel Byrne, Imelda May, and myself. Directed by a wonderful woman named Polly Steele. There you have it — Ireland is beckoning me back!
NS: You love Ireland?
PB: I love Ireland. It’s where I was born, where the heart and soul of the artist and actor was born. I do love Ireland. I’m going to make the movie, then go down to Kerry and see where my father came from.
Nadja Sayej is an arts and culture journalist based in New York City who has written 5 books, including Biennale Bitch and The Celebrity Interview Book.
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