„It’s Going to Go Straight to Video”. Liam Neeson Thought the First Installment of This Action Movie Series, Which Earned Nearly $1 Billion, Would Not Be a Blockbuster
Liam Neeson did not believe in the success of the film with his participation, but the performance in it itself was a pleasure for the actor. And his prediction turned out to be wrong.
Liam Neeson is the star of the action series Taken, in which he starred from 2008 to 2014. During this time there were three installments of the series, in which the actor played the role of retired CIA agent Bryan Mills. It's a role he really wanted, so although he suspected that he was not considered for it, he decided to compete for it. To that end, as he confessed during an interview with IndieWire, he talked to Luc Besson, the screenwriter of Taken.
I knew Luc Besson was behind this Taken script, he was a co-writer and he was the head of the jury. I was hoping to meet him and I did. I said, “Look, Luc, I’m sure I’m not on even your long list of people, but would you consider me?”
Neeson's tactics worked, as he ended up playing the main character in the series. However, he did not expect such a success of a film about Bryan Mills. The actor thought that the production would go straight to video and would not even live to see a theatrical release.
I remember thinking, “It’s going to go straight to video, it doesn’t matter, it’s just such a simple little story.”
After making the film, Neeson didn't think much of it, but as Taken began to debut in more countries, the actor began to discover the phenomenon of a production with his participation, which earned $226 million at the box office. The movie, which he himself treated as a simple production heading straight to video, and which would be an opportunity for him to kick a few stuntmen on screen, turned out to be a hit and lived to see two sequels, which earned $376 million and $326 million, respectively.
The first installment of Taken takes a look at the story of a retired CIA agent who must recall old skills to save his daughter, who was kidnapped during a trip to Paris.
