His film Taken, which was released in the UK & Ireland a few months back, is currently on a US run, and is making quite an impact. On the weekend of February 8th, it had made an impressive $53.3 million at the box office. The film is an action packed adventure in which Neeson plays an ex-CIA man who hunts down the people who have kidnapped his daughter. While it has encountered some mixed reviews, there has been much praise for Neeson for the way that he injected emotion into his character, as well as for his competence in the action scenes which made light of the fact that is 56.
BOND
For those who have seen the film, it will probably come as no surprise to people that he was heavily considered for the role of James Bond 007 in the mid-90s. The role eventually went to fellow Irishman and Seraphim Falls co-star Pierce Brosnan, a decision which has benefited both actors in the long-term. Neeson has gone to appear in a lot of interesting films, which might not have happened had he chosen to play Bond. Brosnan on the other hand, made a huge splash as Bond and this confirmed that he had finally arrived in Hollywood after many years of trying.
Born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Neeson made his acting debut in 1978 in the series "Play For Today", with his film debut coming in as an Evangelist in 1979's Pilgrim's Progress. He went on to have a number of supporting roles in the likes of Excalibur, The Dead Pool and The Bounty before he was awarded an Academy Award nomination for his performance as Oskar Schindler in Steven Spielberg's masterpiece Schindler's List.
COLLINS
This announced to the world that Neeson was a major player in Hollywood, and he most unlucky not be awarded an Oscar that year, when Tom Hanks garnered his first win for Philadelphia. This win was to have a big effect on his career though, and went on to appear in films like Rob Roy, Nell and Michael Collins, where he played one of the most well-known political figures in Irish history.
BLOCKBUSTERS
This performance, as well as many others, have helped endear him to the Irish people, and when they seem him in blockbuster films like Batman Begins, Star Wars and The Chronicle Of Narnia, they know that they rightly claim him as one of their own.
It won't end there for the big man though, as he is due to once again link up with Steven Spielberg for the Jewish directors biopic on Abraham Lincoln. A film which will, no doubt, be much anticipated across the film world.
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