“Behind every great man, there is a woman. As small as she is…” Thus begins the first of the four episodes of the documentary Miss Sean Connery, broadcast this Sunday from 1:20 p.m. on France 2. The one whose title speaks without naming her is Micheline Roquebrune, 93 years old. The narrator is his granddaughter, journalist Stéphanie Renouvin, 45.
The latter was, from childhood, rocked by the autobiographical stories of her maternal grandmother. “She is quite talkative and she tells stories well. I have always heard him talk about his stories from Morocco, the theft of passports, his custody, his very hard childhood with the nuns, his two divorces, confides Stéphanie Renouvin to 20 minutes. Each time, I had like a film scrolling through my head, so I wanted to share it with others. »
Initially, five years ago, the journalist limited herself to recording her grandmother in audio with her phone, to “keep track”. Last year, when the documentary was validated by the production of 1:15 p.m. on Sunday, she decided to conduct the interviews in front of a camera. The format in four episodes, broadcast one after the other, proved to be relevant. “It works really well, like a series, with twists and turns. And it turns out that my grandmother had a life of twists and turns. »
“She embodies emancipation, courage, knowing how to say no”
Indeed, we say to ourselves that a screenwriter would not have dared to imagine such an epic journey. Micheline Roquebrune’s meeting with Sean Connery, during a golf tournament in Casablanca (Morocco) in 1970, has everything of a four-star romantic film, with its dose of passion and drama. He’s already married, too. Love will overcome all obstacles. It will prove, for example, stronger than the control of a husband blinded by jealousy who, after having tried in vain to intern the one who is leaving him, used his connections to prevent her from taking off for England. . Micheline Roquebrune ended up going to ask King Hassan II in person to intercede on her behalf…
“When I started working on this documentary, I left with a very romantic life, rich in anecdotes and adventures. Then, the more I interviewed her, the more I entered into her life and the more I realized that she embodied emancipation, courage, freedom, the fact of knowing how to say no, the will to take the reins of her life,” says Stéphanie Renouvin.
Thursday, after a preview of Miss Sean Connery at the headquarters of France Télévisions, spectators went to see the journalist. “They told me that she was an example for women, that it made them think. I found it wonderful, ”she enthuses.
“She does not realize the richness of her career”
Micheline was in the room. She enjoyed seeing her life told on screen. “She does not realize the richness of her career. It’s all to her credit, I don’t think she’s a pretentious woman. She never asked too many questions about what she is, that’s what makes her interesting, ”says her granddaughter.
Sean Connery represented in the cinema, in the 1970s and 1980s, an ideal of virility, a symbol of masculine power, the typical profile of the fearless hero. It is striking to see to what extent, in the city, his wife was the pillar of their couple. “She was always happy in her shadow role, she didn’t need to be in the spotlight. She pulled the strings a lot. He could concentrate on his art because she managed everything else,” summarizes Stéphanie Renouvin.
Incredible gamble
The star owes Micheline Roquebrune some of the crucial choices of his career. It was she who convinced him to accept to play the role of the father of Indiana Jones and that of Jim Malone in The Incorruptibles who lived his only Oscar for best actor. He was reluctant. She also saved Sean Connery’s fortune with a gamble. This incredible plan is detailed in the third episode by the main interested party who, from the height of her 93 years, retains a cheerful patter and freedom of tone.
“She always made decisions out of love, she always followed her heart. She devoted her life to Sean. At the same time, she has a feminist, free, very independent side, insists Stéphanie Renouvin. It’s paradoxical, but she says she’s the one who chose him and that she doesn’t regret anything. “In the end credits, we say to ourselves that we would gladly rename Sean Connery “Mister Micheline Roquebrune”.