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Entertainment

15th Jan 2021

Liam Neeson says he is retiring from action films

Wayne Farry

He appears to have grown tired of using that particular set of skills.

Actor Liam Neeson has said that he plans to stop making action movies, despite his love for the genre.

Neeson, who had spent the majority of his career as a dramatic actor before appearing in the first of the Taken series in 2008, told Entertainment Tonight that he’ll hang up his fists of fury after finishing some projects currently in the works.

He said: “I’m 68 and a half. 69 this year. There’s a couple more I’m going to do this year – hopefully, Covid allowing us – there’s a couple in the pipeline and, then I think that will probably be it. Well, unless I’m on a Zimmer frame or something.”

His decision, he revealed, was down to no lack of enjoyment for the actions films, and more to do with the physical nature of the roles, which he says have left him “breathless”.

“I love doing ’em. I love beating up guys half my age,” he said. “I’ve just finished one in Australia and I had a fight scene with a kid – lovely, sweet actor called Taylor – and halfway through the fight I looked up, I was breathless and it didn’t cost him a cent, and I said, ‘Taylor, what age are you?’ He said, ’25.’

“I said, ‘That’s the age of my eldest son!'”

According to IMDb, the Irish actor currently has five films set for release or in pre-production. The Marksman, in which Neeson plays a rancher and former Marine tasked with protecting a young child from a drug cartel, is out today.