Liam Neeson will find you, and he will kill you. If he doesn’t shoot you or cut you in half with a light saber first.
It looks like the Irish actor, who has a genuine horror of real life firearms, is less reluctant to point them at people when the guns are props.
Back in 2014, Universal, the studio behind Neeson’s distinctly gruesome shoot ‘em up A Walk Among The Tombstones, released a remarkable document they called the Liam Neeson Kill Map, a document tracking every one of Neeson’s violence victims in his action movie career.
It’s quite a hit list. From poor old Star Wars battle droids facing the chop in The Phantom Menace, to menaced daughters in need of rescue in Taken, the force is as strong as the firepower in Neeson’s global trail of carnage.
It’s an interesting irony that the man who mesmerizes millions as the ultimate action hero is much happier pursuing his own idea of fun, fly-fishing far away from Hollywood in the Utah mountains.
But there are big bucks to be made bumping people off and Neeson’s acting career seems to have become as increasingly mercenary related as his movies.
After passing on Lincoln, because it was taking too long to produce, the role eventually went to Daniel Day Lewis (who won an Oscar for it, ouch) whilst the big Ballymena man tilted increasingly toward action films, demonstrating major box office mojo if not critical raves.
Fans of Neeson's formidable dramatic stage and screen work will be hoping for an end to the chart of carnage soon, since they know that when given the right script he’s one of the most accomplished leading men on the screen.
* Originally published in 2014.
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