Pierce Brosnan, fined for walking in prohibited areas of Yellowstone: “I made an impulsive mistake”

Pierce Brosnan is one of those Hollywood actors—or rather, one of the few Hollywood actors—who make more headlines for his career than for his personal life.

He is not known for any media scandals, fights or confrontations, nor the typical clichés and manias associated with stars.

That's why many were surprised when news broke last December that he had broken the law.

Specifically, the interpreter (Drogheda, Ireland, 70 years old) entered areas prohibited for hiking in the American Yellowstone National Park.

A crime that can even carry sentences of up to six months in prison, although this has not been the case.

The actor pleaded guilty in a court in Mammoth (Wyoming), and for this reason he has been sentenced to pay 1,500 dollars (about 1,400 euros at the current exchange rate).

“As an environmentalist, I have the greatest respect and love for our natural world.

However, I made an impulsive mistake—one that I do not take lightly—by entering a snow-covered thermal area in Yellowstone National Park to take a photograph,” Brosnan begins a message he posted on March 14 on your Instagram account.

He continues: “I did not see a 'No Trespassing' sign warning of the danger nor did I walk in the nearby area.

I deeply regret my transgression and offer my sincerest apologies to everyone for invading this very sensitive area.

Yellowstone and all of our national parks must be cared for and preserved for everyone to enjoy.”

A publication that ends with a recommendation to his 2.1 million followers in the form of a

hashtag: #StayOnThePath

(stay on the path).

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For this “transgression,” which the interpreter known for putting himself in the shoes of James Bond on four occasions now acknowledges online, the court hearing in Mammoth agreed that a fine of $500 be imposed on him for leaving a path.

Additionally, he urged Brosnan to make a $1,000 donation to Yellowstone Forever, an NGO that supports the park.

He must make such a donation before April 1, according to court records to which various media, such as

The Times

or

Forbes,

have had access .

A second charge of violating closures and use limits was dismissed by a U.S. trial judge.

Prosecutors were seeking two years of probation and a maximum fine of $5,000 for Brosnan.

The story dates back to December 26, when the criminal file filed against the actor in a Wyoming District Court for “violating closures and limits” and entering on foot “into thermal areas within the Yellowstone Canyon closed to the public” was known. hiking".

Brosnan, who had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges, entered protected areas prohibited to hikers in this American national park on November 1, 2023. At that time, the actor was in Wyoming filming his next project:

The Unholy Trinity

, a western that was mostly filmed at the Yellowstone Film Ranch, in Paradise Valley, and in which he shares a cast with Samuel L. Jackson, Brandon Lessard and Ethan Peck.

During the excursion, he went off the designated trails to try to get a better view—and, as he has now acknowledged, take a photo—of the hot springs in Mammoth Terraces, an area very popular for its colors and activity in its waters, which can reach more than 160 degrees.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Pierce Brosnan (@piercebrosnanofficial)

The thermal areas of this national park, created on March 1, 1872 (the first in the world, according to their website), include hot springs, more than 500 geysers, mud areas, travertine terraces and fumaroles.

According to the Yellowstone website, park visitors must follow a series of rules: “Do not travel through thermal areas after dark;

no stock is allowed in them;

It is prohibited to alter or put objects in thermal characteristics;

and it is prohibited to swim, submerge or bathe in waters that are entirely of thermal origin.”

Additionally, they must stay on the marked trails at all times, because “the pools are acidic enough to burn your boots.”

Rules that not only protect hikers from possible burns if they touch the hot springs, but also the natural and geothermal wealth of one of the most visited national parks in the country, which was discovered in 1807 by Lewis and Clark.

“Hot springs have injured or killed more people in Yellowstone than any other natural feature,” can be read in the section referring to safety measures in the park on the website of the agency in charge of caring for the national parks of the United States.

According to NBC News, Yellowstone's thermal features have caused the deaths of more than 20 people since 1890.