Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The joke is that Ramirez, played by Sean Connery in his unmistakable Scottish voice, is an Egyptian who has been passing as Spanish and who corrects a Scot's insult in that same accent. Fans love it as the film's cheeky wink and as the moment Ramirez's vanity shows. It is quoted as shorthand for being wrongly pigeonholed.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for HighlanderShow the scene
In Highlander, Juan Sanchez-Villalobos Ramirez, an immortal swordsman, has found the Scottish clansman Connor MacLeod and is training him. During a lesson on balance the two end up in a small boat, where Connor grumbles that he hates boats and water and cannot swim. He calls his teacher a "Spanish peacock", and Ramirez replies that he is not Spanish but Egyptian. Connor protests that he was told Spain; Ramirez soon has him out of the boat, panicking in the water, and reminds him that an immortal cannot drown.
Sources (3)
- Springfield! Springfield! script: HighlanderBoat lessonReference checked
- Wikipedia: Highlander (film)Plot and CastReference checked
- Highlander (1986) transcriptThe balance lesson in the boatReference checked
Context reviewed
