Most of us knowLiam Neesonas an action hero.
For theater buffs, Neeson is also known for his impressivestage resume.
But how did Neeson become one of the most coveted, busiest actors in Hollywood?
His story isn’t exactly a straightforward one.
Curious to find out how it all happened?
Here is the stunning transformation of Liam Neeson.
His parents were Barney, a school custodian, and Kitty, a school cook.
He had a traditional Northern Irish Catholic upbringing.
At Sunday Mass, he toldMen’s Journal, he got his first taste of grand theatricality.
But growing up Catholic during “The Troubles” of Northern Ireland wasn’t easy.
“You grew up cautious, let’s put it that way,” he said.
AsIrish Centralnoted, more than 3,000 people died during what is also known as theNorthern Ireland conflict.
“I never stop thinking about it,” he confessed during the premiere ofFive Minutes of Heaven.
“I’ve known guys and girls who have been perpetrators of violence and victims.
It’s part of my DNA.”
Nevertheless, his early childhood was mostly pretty normal.
“Everything revolved around school,” he toldUNICEF.
As he toldGQ, he began acting at the age of 11 so that impress a girl at school.
His real passion as a child, however, was boxing.
Over time, the small club became one of the best in Ireland.
Neeson was 11 when he started competing.
For a while, he even thought he’d become a professional.
I could be the same.'
You think all that stuff," he recalled.
However, Neeson stopped boxing at 17 when he realized he didn’t have enough time to train properly.
He dropped out, however, to work at the Guinness factory (viaBBC).
As Neeson later toldMetro, it was at the factory that he realized he wanted to be an actor.
Neeson replied, “Actually, I want to be an actor.”
The man said, “You could be another Roy Rogers.”
Neeson then went on to train as a teacher in Newcastle, but this career didn’t last long.
When he encountered an unruly 15-year-old student who pulled out a knife, Neeson punched him.
Neeson was fired, and in 1976 he joined the Belfast Lyric Players' Theater.
In his first movie, he played a Christ figure.
As he toldGQ,it was somewhat of an odd experience.
Apparently, an evangelical outreach organization came to town to find local actors.
“I don’t know what I got paid,” he recalled.
“Peanuts,” he went on, “but it was a lot, it seemed.”
Nevertheless, Neeson wasn’t particularly interested in film at the time.
Shortly after, he moved to the Abbey Theater in Dublin (viaBelfast Telegraph).
It was there that he was spotted by John Boorman for the filmExcalibur.
This would be a life-changing film for Neeson as it would eventually move him to London.
As he toldThe New York Times Magazine, “She was so sexy.
I thought, ‘Gosh, that’s Helen Mirren!’
She was as beautiful up close as on stage.
I was in love with this extraordinary human being.”
Neeson went on to recall his first meeting on the set of the film.
“I was smitten,” he said.
He moved in with her in London, where his career really started to pick up.
In fact, it marked his first Oscar nomination.
At the time, it was one of the hardest roles he’d ever undertaken.
“Lives otherwise destined for the gas chamber and other horrific atrocities in these camps.”
In fact, as he revealed toMen’s Journal, he was even considered to play James Bond!
The pair married in 1994 and had two sons.
According to a 1999 article inThe Guardian, the busy Hollywood lifestyle was no longer something that Neeson wanted.
“I’m getting out,” Neeson had apparently said in 1993.
By 1999, he seemed like he’d finally made up his mind.
“It’s only recently that I figured out what I am uncomfortable with,” he said.
“Now that I am in my middle years, certain intuitive truths have hit home.
I don’t think I can live with the inauthenticity of movies any more.”
Of course, Neeson’s plan to quit acting in movies never really came to fruition.
As he toldEntertainment Weeklythat same year, he, instead, planned to take things more slowly.
Instead, he learned his craft on the job.
In an interview with theBelfast Telegraph, he explained how his technique developed and changed over the years.
In terms of choosing roles, he begins with the script.
“I’m always motivated by script first,” he said.
“And it’s either something that gets under my skin or it doesn’t.”
“I’ve learnt over the years not to [overthink] things,” he explained.
As Neeson toldThe Irish Sun, the role marked a turning point in his career.
“I seem to have been re-envisioned as an action figure ever sinceTakencame out” (viaHer).
AsMen’s Journalnoted, it was an unexpected career change for Neeson.
Plus, Neeson was in his 50s when the movie was released.
Nevertheless, action films proved to be the perfect fit for the Irishman.
I love doing that myself … the fighting I love doing."
After all, Neeson had wanted to be a professional boxer as a kid.
His wife of 15 years died from head injuries after a skiing accident.
Just one year previously, Neeson had told theBelfast Telegraphhis life was “content.”
In an interview published in 2020 inThe Jakarta Post, Neeson opened up about the horrific experience.
Neeson was also left as a single father left to parent their two sons.
Speaking toGQin 2014, he said that raising two teenage boys was tough.
“They’re flexing muscles and sometimes dangerous avenues, and you think, ‘F***.
If Tasha was here someone could share this.’
But yeah, we’re doing all right, you know?'”
In many ways, this shift was something that came with success.
“I’m less driven than I used to be,” he told theBelfast Telegraph.
Fame, it seems, became more and more tiring.
The revelation created a mediafrenzywith many fans and publications expressing shock and disgust.
Neeson later spoke about the interview onGood Morning America,noting that he isn’t racist.
He explained that his realization that his feelings were wrong was an example of growth and learning.
Obviously, the subject matter was quite close to home for them both.
As Richardson toldThe Timesof his own mother’s death, “It was so sudden.
“It was emotional,” he said.
And as Neeson toldParade, he enjoyed working with his son in Tuscany.
Plus, he said, the film was one of his favorite experiences.
“I mean it 1,000 percent,” he said.
For Neeson, the theater, it seems, has always been his first and greatest love.
In fact, in the future, he hopes to get back on stage.
One thing’s clear Neeson certainly hasn’t lost any of his artistic integrity over the years.
If anything, it’s stronger than ever.
