Liam Neeson - Taken - Interview
He's been acting in films for over 25 years and played all manner of men, but Liam Neeson is constantly drawn to historical figures 'who stand for something'. His latest film is a radical departure. In Taken, Liam Neeson is part Terminator, part Jason Bourne, pursuing a group of kidnappers who have abducted his daughter. Gaynor Flynn spoke with the Irish actor about his new role
What attracted you to this role? I liked the idea of making a thriller that had good pace and aimed high on an emotional level. Above all, we see Bryan [his character] as a father who idolises his daughter. But then, even though it's never been a fantasy of mine to play an action hero, one gets a real kick out of shooting real movie baddies and driving like a racing car driver.
What's your process for choosing roles? I'm always motivated by script. That's my sole criterion and it's either something that gets under my skin or it doesn't, to be honest. And with this script I just loved the action of it. I loved the fact that I was being asked to do it. I was 54 years of age then and I thought in a few years' time I'm never going to be asked to do this sort of stuff again.
You had to undergo some pretty rigorous training for this role. I keep pretty fit, but I had to crank up the level and intensity of my training. I had to get together with a couple of guys in Paris and learn these different fight techniques known as parkour (a propulsive fighting style) which we had to keep doing for weeks because there was so many complex fighting sequences.
Every time I saw my wife she thought I'd been beaten up literally, and of course I had. But Pierre wanted me to do as much of the action myself as I could for authenticity's sake. He didn't make me jump in front of a bus or off a bridge, but I think he thought about it.
You start filming Abraham Lincoln next year with Steven Spielberg, what can you tell us? Steven asked me to play him four years ago, so I've been spending the past three years researching him. He's someone I admire. He believed in the destiny of democracy. That's what drove him and so he's an extraordinarily complex man, of course. These characters usually are; they're not simple people.
What about the speculation that Lincoln was gay? I think the evidence is flimsy. That's not to say that he wasn't gay, but it's not to say he was either.
Taken is in cinemas now
