Liam Neeson Reveals He’s ‘Embarrassed’ of This Iconic Movie Franchise originally appeared on Parade.
The Taken movie trilogy is beloved by millions, though star Liam Neeson admitted he’s a little “embarrassed” of the franchise.
“I was a tiny bit embarrassed [by Taken],” Neeson, 73, told The New York Times in an interview published on Thursday, July 31. “Don’t get me wrong, I did love the script. But I can’t tell you how many voicemails [of the Taken speech] I’ve recorded for my sons’ friends.”
Neeson is the father to adult sons Micheál, 30, and Daniel, 28, with late wife Natasha Richardson, who died in 2009 at the age of 45.
The first Taken film was released in 2008 and followed his character, Bryan Mills, as he set out to rescue his daughter from sex-trafficking. Following the success of the first film, two sequels followed in 2012 and 2015 and gave Neeson a major resurgence in his career.
While speaking to the outlet, Neeson said that his days as an action star may be coming to an end soon. “There comes a point where audiences know, and I don’t want to insult an audience by me pretending I’m 50 years of age,” he said. “I don’t want to do that. I have too much respect for audiences.”
The speech Neeson’s son’s friends love was about the character’s “very particular set of skills.” Even before his recent interview with The New York Times, Neeson admitted that the speech has followed him around.
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In October 2024, Neeson told People that the speech came up in conversation when he reported to jury duty. “He’s calling, I don’t know, 55, 60 of us,” he recalled of the clerk. “He gets to me, but all I’m hearing is, ‘I have a particular set of skills. Skills that would make me…’ And I thought, ‘Oh f–k no.'”
“It was actually really sweet and flattering. As I was leaving, people started to applaud,” the Naked Gun actor recalled.
He then reflected on Taken‘s success by adding, “It just seemed to have touched something in the psychic nerve of moviegoing audiences.”
Liam Neeson Reveals He’s ‘Embarrassed’ of This Iconic Movie Franchise first appeared on Parade on Jul 31, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 31, 2025, where it first appeared.
