For some, he was the ultimate James Bond.
He had women from all over the world wanting to be shaken and served to him in a martini
glass just so that they could be in close contact with his lips.
Pierce Brosnan is an undeniable hunk, and when you throw in a charming British accent,
he has the power to buckle the knees of any woman he comes across.
Unfortunately, the actor's life has been overshadowed by a shocking amount of bad luck and tragedy.
He had to go on the painful journey of learning to love again after losing the love of his
life; sadly this would not be the only time that he would lose a loved one.
From feeling insecure about the James Bond films, to battling heartbreaking losses, it
seems like life kept dealing Pierce all the bad cards.
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It was back in 1977 when Pierce first laid eyes on the woman that would soon become the
love of his life.
Brosnan met Cassandra Harris at a mutual friend's house.
At the time, she was still married to film producer Dermot Harris, and they had two children
of their own.
"What a beautiful looking woman.
I never for an instant thought she was someone I'd spend 17 years of my life with.
I didn't think of wooing her, or attempting to woo her; I just wanted to enjoy her beauty
and who she was."
Pierce recalled their first meeting.
After Cassandra and Dermot split, she and Pierce soon started dating, and they married
in 1980.
The loving couple had a son together, Sean, a few years later, but the actor had also
taken in Cassandra's other children from her previous marriage as his own.
He legally adopted them after their father died, and it seemed like the family was happier
than they could have ever expected.
Brosnan was the ultimate father and the perfect husband.
"We just clicked as a family.
To begin with I was Pierce, then I was Daddy Pierce, and then I just became Dad."
Sadly, the perfect bubble of bliss that the family was so happy in was suddenly popped
when the unthinkable happened.
Seven years into their marriage, Cassandra was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
It was a frightening diagnosis, and Cassandra knew she was going to have an almost impossible
battle to fight.
She had lost her mother to the very same disease.
"When your partner gets cancer, then life changes.
Your timetable and reference for your normal routines and the way you view life, all this
changes."
Pierce confessed.
After four years of struggling with cancer, Cassandra sadly passed away, leaving her husband
alone to care for their children.
She was just 43 years old.
Brosnan recalled lying by her hospital bedside and described her passing as, quote, "the
longest night of my life".
The slow decline in her health and her eventual demise nearly ruined Brosnan.
"This is the first time in my life I've ever experienced bereavement, and it's overwhelming.
Such things draw a mark across your heart and it's always a part of your life.
To watch someone you love have their life eaten away — bit by bit, by this insidious
and horrid disease — becomes an indelible part of your psyche."
the actor confessed.
He
didn't want to have to let go of his beloved first wife, but he knew that she would have
wanted him to be happy.
He kept Cassandra close to his heart, and soon he was able to find the strength to love
again.
A few years later, Brosnan met his second wife, Keely Shaye Smith , and the pair tied
the knot in 2001.
Smith was an instrumental part in helping Brosnan grieve, he believed that his late
wife had guided Keely into his life so that he could fall in love again.
"The memory of Cassie and her fight against cancer is never forgotten.
I think of Cassie all the time — my son Sean is also her son ... I suppose Keely is
my North Star, always looking out for me."
For years, Pierce thought that his past was behind him, that he would never have to face
another loss ever again.
Unfortunately, the actor could not have been more wrong.
Brosnan almost lost his son in a 2000 drunk-driving accident.
In what could have been a fatal accident, Brosnan's then 13-year-old son Sean, barely
survived after suffering "multiple fractures and spinal injuries."
The accident occurred when the driver, quote, "swerved to avoid a large rock," at which
point the vehicle veered off a mountain road, falling 150 to 200 feet.
Pierce rushed to the scene and remained by his son's side the entire time.
He thanked emergency responders for saving his son and his friends from the jaws of death.
Pierce was overwhelmed with gratitude for his son's survival, but unfortunately, in
just a few years, he would lose one of his children from something that they could not
be saved from.
During the time that his career was booming, and he was taking Hollywood by storm as the
handsome British heartthrob, Pierce was given the news he never thought he'd have to hear
again.
His adopted daughter from his first marriage, Charlotte, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer,
the same cancer that had taken her mother.
Tragedy struck Pierce once again in 2013 when Charlotte lost her battle to cancer and passed
away at just 41 years old.
At the time, Brosnan was filming a spy thriller November Man in Europe but he rushed home
to be with his daughter before she passed.
"On June 28 at 2 p.m. my darling daughter Charlotte Emily passed on to eternal life,
having succumbed to ovarian cancer,"
The actor fell into a dark depression following the death of his daughter.
He had always wanted to be a good father, since his own father had abandoned him as
a child.
His mother had also relocated to London for better work opportunities.
As a result, he was left to live with relatives, and at one point, in a boarding house with
strangers.
Young Pierce was left alone and had to learn to fend for himself.
Brosnan had only met his father once, and the only thing he could remember about him
was that he had a good whistle.
Other than that, his father was just a man who had abandoned his family, and Pierce swore
that when he would have children of his own, he would be the best father he could.
It's hard to believe, but when it comes to the James Bond films, the actor was incredibly
critical of his work.
Although it had always been his dream to be cast as the British crime fighter, Pierce
never thought he was good enough for the role.
When flat out asked if he's ever watched any Bond film he starred in Brosnan didn't hold
back.
"I have no desire to watch myself as James Bond.
'Cause, it's just never good enough.
It's a horrible feeling."
There might be a deeper reason to why he can't seem to watch himself as 007.
In his own words, he was "kicked to the curb."
when it came to recasting the role.
During negotiations with Bond film producers, Brosnan said he was left, quote, "utterly
shocked" after an awkward call during which one of the producers was even crying on the
phone.
They simply said, "We're so sorry.
You were a great James Bond.
Thank you very much."
Not knowing how to respond, Pierce said, "Thank you very much.
Goodbye."
That's how quickly his career as James Bond came to an end.
However, the producers of the film claimed that Brosnan had been asking for too much
money for his role in the fifth film.
He was then replaced by Daniel Craig, who subsequently found himself on the receiving
end of some pointed Brosnan shade.
In 2015, Brosnan said Spectre, Craig's fourth film as the MI6 Agent, "was too long," and
he didn't stop there.
The actor added, "The story was kind of weak — it could have been condensed.
It kind of went on too long.
It really did."
- Owch.
During a 2017 interview, he'd seemingly lost a certain zest for life.
"I don't look at the cup as half full, believe me.
The dark, melancholy Irish black dog sits beside me from time to time."
We can't seem to blame him for having that kind of perception of life, he's been dealt
with some pretty tough cards, and it can't be easy to recover from so many losses.
He may not be as busy as he used to be as an actor, but he's found solace in his home
amongst his family and loved ones.
When he's not fiddling around the house or spending time with his family, Brosnan has
a paintbrush in his hands.
The actor turned to art to cope with emotional times and process a lot of his grief.
"I got up one night and I started painting; I went to the painting to express pain, emotions
— to put down the agitation of the heart and out came color."
The actor and his lovely wife Keely have been together for almost 30 years, and it's obvious
the two are still very much in love.
Pierce, who has never shied away from sharing his feelings about Smith, regularly posts
pictures of the two of them together on Instagram with captions oozing with love and adoration
for his beloved wife.
Fans are thrilled that despite having suffered so much hardship throughout his life, that
the actor has at least found happiness with the one he loves.