The one actor Liam Neeson is desperate to work with: “There’s an absolute truth”
From small-budget films to solid Hollywood leading-man roles and onto becoming an action hero at 61, Liam Neeson has shared the screen with his fair share of stars. Early on, he appeared alongside the likes of Robert De Niro and Anthony Hopkins, while his breakthrough film Schindler’s List featured Ralph Fiennes and Ben Kingsley. Then there were Ewan McGregor and Natalie Portman from the Star Wars prequels and Christian Bale in Batman Begins. He’s even set to appear on screen with Pamela Anderson in the 2025 remake of The Naked Gun. And the list goes on and on.
But still, when it comes to actors, there’s always someone they’re just biding their time to work with. And after roughly 115 films, Neeson still isn’t fully satisfied. Speaking to GQ in 2014, he talked about the one actor he’d love to work with, “I’d love to work with Denzel. I have such admiration for him as an actor. I see an incredible nuance of someone who’s so comfortable in front of a camera.”
Adding, “There’s an intelligence there; there’s an absolute truth. I’ve never seen that man portray anything less than the truth. It’s pure. I don’t see any little acting signs, any kind of what we would call ‘chewing the scenery.’ Never, never, never.” Regardless of your own opinions of the American star, it’s safe to say he embodies a certain swagger and comfort in every role he plays, from The Tragedy of Macbeth to Gladiator II to American Gangster.
And we know he’s not just plucking any cool actor out of thin air, as Neeson has praised Washington on several occasions. In 2022, he praised the actor for his work on The Equalizer films, saying he was one of America’s greatest movie stars. This praise is interesting, considering the two battled it out at the box office in 2014 when Washington’s first Equalizer and Neeson’s A Walk Among Tombstones were released within a week of each other.
Even more interesting are the similarities between The Equalizer and Nesson’s iconic Taken franchises. Both lead characters are former intelligence officers trying to live normal lives post-retirement. They both get drawn back into a seedy underworld when a young woman is threatened, and both exceed stereotypes about their age to rescue their charges and kick loads of ass in the process. Taken also generated two sequels and a spin-off TV show.
Clearly, both men share a specific set of skills, and Neeson sees the potential of teaming up. But while they battled it out at the box office, the two action stars have never managed to share the screen. Considering how long they’ve both been active and the kind of roles they are drawn to, it’s mind-boggling that the two have never even briefly been involved in the same project.
However, considering both are still running and gunning in the seventh decade of their lives, there’s still a possibility we’ll see the two powerhouses battle it out together on screen. Although, let’s hope it happens before the rumoured Black Panther 3, as Washington has mentioned it could be his last role before retirement.
