Liam Neeson is an incredibly talented and respected actor, being one of the most well-recognized actors in the film industry. He has starred in many massively successful projects like The A-Team, The Grey, Schindler’s List, and Kinsey, through which, he has made a name for himself as an incredibly skilled and diverse actor. He has been awarded for this skill a number of times, including being nominated for an Academy Award once, in the category of Best Actor for his work in Schindler’s List.
Before an actor is finalized for a role, many different actors audition and try their hand at potentially being cast. Many famous actors have almost been cast in roles that have gone to another famous actor. This is, perhaps of the most common practices of Hollywood, and Neeson was subject to it when Iron Man actor, Jeff Bridges auditioned for one of his most successful projects.
Liam Neeson Replaced Jeff Bridges
Despite starring in many well-known projects throughout his career, Liam Neeson is most well-known for his work in the Taken film series. What many fans of the film series may not know, however, is that another famous actor was supposed to play the role. Jeff Bridges, best known for his work in Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man, as well as Tron, The Old Man, and The Big Lebowski, was almost going to play Neeson’s role in the film.
Apparently, Bridges didn’t only audition for the role but was also cast into it before Neeson. He, however, ended up dropping out of the project and the role went to The A-Team actor. Interestingly enough, after seeing the film after its release, Bridges stated that he believed Neeson was the better choice for the role and that everything worked out for the better.
Liam Neeson Did Not Think Taken Would Be Successful
Liam Neeson was given the role of Bryan Mills in Taken because the actor wanted to explore his options as an actor and take on a more physically challenging role, adding that he wanted to try something he was rarely ever offered. Oddly enough, however, this may not have been the full truth as the actor confessed to something completely different later on.
Apparently, the actor also got onto the project as he wanted to spend four months in Paris and learn Karate during the shooting of this film. To make matters even more worse, Neeson did not actually believe that the film was going to do well, and actually expected it to be a complete failure. To his surprise, however, the film was a massive hit, getting multiple sequels and establishing Neeson in the action film genre in a brand new way, that would stick for years to come.
Source: IMDb
