MovieChat Forums > Liam Neeson Discussion > Neeson is Officially Typecast now

Neeson is Officially Typecast now

posted 10 years ago by freshboy3001
6 replies | jump to latest

typecast - verb

Assign (an actor or actress) repeatedly to the same type of role, as a result of the appropriateness of their appearance or previous success in such roles.

Liam Neeson is liked/loved by all like he's our favourite uncle, but let's list some of his recent, major releases since Taken.

Taken (2008)
A retired CIA agent travels across Europe and relies on his old skills to save his estranged daughter, who has been kidnapped while on a trip to Paris.
The poster: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm3195046400/tt0936501?ref_=tt_ov_i

Unknown (2011)
A man awakens from a coma, only to discover that someone has taken on his identity and that no one, (not even his wife), believes him. With the help of a young woman, he sets out to prove who he is.
The poster: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm383812608/tt1401152?ref_=tt_ov_i

Taken 2 (2012)
In Istanbul, retired CIA operative Bryan Mills and his wife are taken hostage by the father of a kidnapper Mills killed while rescuing his daughter.
The poster: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm3396577792/tt1397280?ref_=tt_ov_i

Non-Stop (2014)
An air marshal springs into action during a transatlantic flight after receiving a series of text messages that put his fellow passengers at risk unless the airline transfers $150 million into an off-shore account.
The poster: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm922999808/tt2024469?ref_=tt_ov_i

A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014)
Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife.
The Poster: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm105172736/tt0365907?ref_=tt_ov_i

Taken 3 (2014)
Ex-government operative Bryan Mills is accused of a ruthless murder he never committed or witnessed. As he is tracked and pursued, Mills brings out his particular set of skills to find the true killer and clear his name.
The poster: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1239285248/tt2446042?ref_=tt_ov_i

Run All Night (2015)
An aging hitman is forced to take on his brutal former boss to protect his estranged son and his family.
The poster: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm3430219008/tt2199571?ref_=tt_ov_i

Forget the similar stories (hostage situations) of each film for a second and look back at each poster.... What is the ONE thing you see in common in each and every one....

It's Liam Neeson holding a pistol.

I'm not complaining. He's good at it, the films make bank and they're decently thought of critically. The question is, why has he become typecast in this sense? What made him such a hit for these hitman-type movies?

Never let others dictate your opinion on a film:
http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=13340299

[–] praxis44241 10 years ago

I came to this board after having this same conversation with a co-worker. Somewhere along the way, Liam Neeson became the biggest killer in Hollywood.
It seems he has been typecast, but that is probably because his action movies, where he kills a lot of people, are such a big succcess that his other work is overshadowed.

[–] MadSimian 10 years ago

Well, he's had a pretty interesting career so I don't begrudge him doing movies he likes to do in his older age. At least, I assume he likes to do them...I mean, one would think he wouldn't keep taking the roles if he didn't want to. ;D

Personally my three favorite roles of his are: Martin Brogan of "High Spirits"(the man can be extremely funny when he wants to be), Jerome Lovell in "Nell"(great dramatic/romantic role for him) and the titular character in "Rob Roy"(which I actually prefer over "Braveheart"...so sue me lol). Notable mentions would be: Westlake/Darkman in "Darkman"(another one showing his campy sense of humor), Ducard/Ra's Al Ghul in the Nolanverse Batmans(Al Ghul was always my fav Batman villain) and his Academy Award nominated role in "Schindler's List".

One day men will look back and say that I gave birth to the twentieth century.

[–] ryto_69 10 years ago

yeah seriously I came to the forum just to see if people were talking about this

[–] prodigiousone 10 years ago

While I agree most all of his recent films are pretty much the same, at least he IS now doing "Silence", a new film with director Martin Scorsese. It is a very low budget historical drama based on Shusako Endo's 1966 novel about Jesuit priests in medieval Japan.

That is certainly a refreshing change for him.

[–] freshboy3001 10 years ago

Yeah, Silence sounds really interesting, especially because I love films revolving around Japan or Japanese culture.

Never let others dictate your opinion on a film:
http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=13340299

[–] My_Name_Is_Lydia 10 years ago

Typecast isn't the right word, IMO. "Typecast" sounds like someone desperate for parts who keeps getting roles because they're good at being the loser or nerd and they do it for very little money.

Liam is becoming obscenely RICH RICH RICH being a bad-ass. This is more of a niche. I love it.

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