LIAM NEESON: Well, the foundation stone is always the writing.
It’s the script.
I love the idea of characters trying to make amends.
Image by Zanda Rice
He’s not religious at all.
He’s an alcoholic.
He’s done some brutal things in his life.
An aging gangster attempts to reconnect with his children and rectify the mistakes in his past, but the criminal underworld won’t loosen their grip willingly.
But there’s a tiny keyhole of redemption through his grandson.
That really appealed to me.
NEESON: Well, I had one tiny concussion when I was 15.
It didn’t last long, but a little scary.
It all helped to identify with this character.
It was a big help.
I believe this is the second time you’ve worked with this director, Hans Moland, afterCold Pursuit.
NEESON: Well, it depends on the script.
I very much liked his personality, his attitude, his experience.
And we got along with each other famously.
There were no big endless discussions about what the scene is about this, that, or the other.
We just had a feel for each other.
I like him very much.
I hope I can make another one with him in the not-too-distant future.
Or do you just leave that up to the director and costuming and makeup?
How much do you like to be involved with that?
NEESON: I have to be very involved.
It has to be.
So the actor’s input is very, very important.
Did you feel like you were able to nail his look quickly in this one?
There are a couple of really distinct dream sequences inAbsolutionthat I thought felt unique to this genre.
Did I imagine that, or were you indeed playing with that pop in of thing in those sequences?
NEESON: Oh, sure.
Yeah, the sequences are quite unique, I think, in the film.
There’s no misty lens going like this [waves hand back and forth].
And how long did it take for those nerves to pass?
NEESON: The nerves never passed.
We wrapped it two months ago … about three months ago, actually, in Atlanta.
I think it went well.
I trusted Akiva very much because it’s a genre I’m not really used to.
I’ve done a couple of little TV sketches that might last two minutes or something.
But, for a whole movie, this was a novel experience for me.
So I was a bit nervous, and I was a bit nervous most days.
Because I wasn’t sure if I was funny, to be honest.
You’ve done some big blockbuster-franchise-jot down stuff in your career:Star WarsandBatman.
NEESON: Yeah, I think smaller … for want of a better word, more intimate.
It was great to do aStar Wars, or aBatmanwith Chris Nolan.
Hollywood, with all their bells and whistles, they are extraordinary achievements.
But they’re not my personal cup of tea.
I do prefer a more intimate bang out of film.
Absolutionopens in theaters across the U.S. this Friday, November 1.
