Liam Neeson turned down James Bond role because late wife Natasha Richardson said she wouldn't marry him if he took it

 THE INDEPENDENT
JESS DENHAM  Author Biography   Friday 07 March 2014

Liam Neeson was “heavily courted” for the role of James Bond, but turned down the martinis and bikinis because of his late wife’s wishes.

The Irish actor, whose latest film Non-Stop is top of the US box office, is renowned for his work in action movies.

But when his wife Natasha Richardson told him she would not marry him if he played 007, Neeson decided against taking up the high-profile part.

“I was heavily courted, let’s put it that way, and I’m sure some other actors were too,” the 61-year-old told the Hull Daily Mail.

“It was about 18 or 19 years ago and my wife-to-be said, 'If you play James Bond we’re not getting married'. And I had to take that on board because I did want to marry her.”

Oscar-nominated Neeson insists that he has never regretted passing on any film roles.

Recently, the actor spoke candidly about his grief after Richardson died five years ago in a skiing accident.

READ MORE HERE; http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/liam-neeson-turned-down-james-bond-role-to-marry-natasha-richardson-9176657.html

Liam Neeson On Natasha Richardson, 5 Years After Her Death

HUFFPOST CELEBRITY
Posted: 02/21/2014 3:37 am EST Updated: 02/21/2014 12:59 pm EST




Liam Neeson is opening up about the loss of his wife, actress Natasha Richardson, who died in a skiing accident five years ago.

"There's periods now in our New York residence when I hear the door opening, especially the first couple of years ... any time I hear that door opening, I still think I'm going to hear her," Neeson tells Anderson Cooper.

In a clip from an interview to air Sunday night on "60 Minutes," the actor describes the pact he made with his wife and what he said to her as she lay dying in the hospital.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/21/liam-neeson-on-natasha-richardson_n_4829101.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular

Liam Neeson one of Tinseltown's biggest earners (THE SUN) BY PAUL BRADY Published: 5 hrs ago

LIAM Neeson was one of Tinseltown’s top 10 earners last year as his paydays from Taken 2 and The Grey saw him rake in €24m.

The Irishman came in 10th on a list of Hollywood heavyweights compiled by Forbes magazine headed up by reformed bad boy Robert Downey Jr.

It was finally a good year for Ballymena boy Neeson, 61, who threw himself into his work following the tragic death of wife Natasha Richardson.

Downey Jr, 48, rocketed from nowhere to lead the posse thanks to the massive box office superhero hits The Avengers and Iron Man 3.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.thesun.co.uk/irishsol/homepage/news/5019045/Neeson-one-of-Tinsletowns-biggest-earners.html

Liam Neeson: Sex is losing its mystery (THE TELEGRAPH)

TIm Walker. Edited by Richard Eden7:30AM GMT 05 Jan 2013

A single parent since the death of his beloved wife, Natasha Richardson, three years ago, Liam Neeson says he has struggled to cope with the sexualised nature of society.

“I’d hate to be a kid now, because we’re all inundated with so much information about sexuality coming at us from everywhere – the media, the advertising billboards, just everywhere – and it must be so confusing for them,” says the actor, who has two sons, Micheál, 17, and Daniel, 16, by Richardson.

The Oscar-nominated star of such films as Schindler’s List and Love Actually says the sexualisation of society is ruining loving relationships. “There’s a problem that, if you become over-familiar with something, it moves from the sacred to almost the profane,” he tells The Catholic Herald.

“The act is very, very special, you know. It’s full of mystery and wonder, and I’d hate us all to get to the stage where we just treat it lightly, because it deserves more than that … but times have changed since I was young, no doubt about it.”


READ MORE: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/9780876/Liam-Neeson-Sex-is-losing-its-mystery.html

Liam Neeson stuns locals by working a shift at his sister’s Irish laundry company By Amy Andrews (IRISH CENTRAL)

The 59-year-old ‘Battleship’ star spent more than two hours ironing shirts for customers to help launch his sister Elizabeth’s new venture in Northern Ireland.

A source told The Sun newspaper: “Everyone did a double take when they they saw Liam ironing. “No one expected to see a huge star like him doing the laundry.”

Meanwhile, the Catholic-raised actor – whose wife Natasha Richardson died in a skiing accident in 2009 - is considering becoming a Muslim after falling in love with the religion and its rituals during a trip to Istanbul in Turkey. 

Read more:http://www.irishcentral.com/story/ent/amyandrews_gossipgirl/liam-neeson-stuns-locals-by-working-a-shift-at-his-sisters-irish-laundry-company-147147705.html

Liam Neeson - Liam Neeson Often Mistaken For Ralph Fiennes 06 April 2012 08:01 (CONTACT MUSIC)

Liam Neeson is often mistaken for his close friend Ralph Fiennes and even impersonated his pal to sign an autograph for one hapless fan.

"Once, my wife (late actress Natasha Richardson) and I were walking through the Plaza Athenee, this beautiful hotel in Paris, and this elderly couple got up and said, 'Excuse me, my husband and I are visiting from America'.

"The lady grabbed one of these beautiful tea service menus and said, 'Would you mind signing this for us?' I said, 'It would be my absolute pleasure'. And as I'm about to sign it, she said, 'We absolutely adored The English Patient'.

"So I signed it 'With love, Ralph Fiennes'. I could not burst their bubble."


READ MORE:  http://www.contactmusic.com/news/liam-neeson-often-mistaken-for-ralph-fiennes_1314395

Liam Neeson: Turning 60 and not too pleased about it (Daily Record)

Liam Neeson: I'm flattered I still get offered roles in action films as I near 60

Jan 20 2012 By Rick Fulton

Liam Neeson stars in new survival thriller The Grey

Liam Neeson will turn 60 this year. But despite being a king of the big screen, he’s banned any talk of a party – and even admits that he feels past his sell-by date when it comes to women.

The star of Schindler’s List, Rob Roy and Gangs of New York hits the big 6-0 in June and isn’t relishing its arrival.

“I really hate it,” he says.

“I’m not going to celebrate it. What am I going to do? Go to a strip club or something like that?
“I can’t do it.”

Since the death of his wife, actress Natasha Richardson, in 2009 following a skiing accident, he has raised their sons Michael and Daniel as a single father.

“My sons were saying the other day, ‘Dad, we’re going to throw you a big party for your birthday.’

“I said, ‘No, we’re not!’”

And although he’s dating PR executive Freya St Johnston, the big birthday seems to be weighing on his credentials as one of Hollywood’s hunks. He doesn’t even think he’d have a chance in the LA dating game any more.

“Nah,” he says. “Because I’m 59, you know?

“I think I’m past my due date. I just feel it.”

Many women would beg to differ but one thing is certain – when it comes to his big screen appeal, he’s never been as busy – or successful.

Last year’s action thriller Unknown was box office gold, going straight to No1.

And at the end of this month, he stars in the taut survival epic The Grey, which will kick off a year when it will feel like he’s never out of our cinemas.

The sequel to Clash of the Titans, Wrath of the Titans, in which he plays Zeus, arrives in March; Battleship, based on the board game of the same name and also starring Rihanna, is set for April and he is also rumoured to reprise his Batman role in The Dark Night Rises in July.

Oh yes, and he’s currently filming the sequel to the unexpected smash-hit Taken, which is due in October.

Not bad for a man who has notched up 55 films since his debut in 1978 and has been a worldwide star since 1993’s Schindler’s List, which earned him an Oscar nomination for best actor.


Read more:  http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/showbiz/celebrity-interviews/2012/01/20/liam-neeson-i-m-flattered-i-still-get-offered-roles-in-action-films-as-i-near-60-86908-23708854/