In recent films such as Taken and Non-Stop, Liam Neeson has been transformed into one of Hollywood's more unlikely tough-guy action heroes.
His character in A Walk Among the Tombstones, based on the novel by Lawrence Block, is also a tough guy and there is some action, but there is also a much darker shade to his character.
Neeson chats about his character Matt Scudder, the former New York City cop turned private detective, who is hired by a drug dealer to find his kidnapped wife
What attracted you to the character?
It was one of those iconic screen characters that I’ve always been drawn to. Rob Mitchum with a trench coat, a shaft of light across his face ... just something very mysterious and masculine about it, you know? And they’re kind of broken men, but that moral fibre in them is still very very strong.
Matt Scudder is very different from other characters you've played, but some may compare it to Taken.
It’s a lot darker and I don’t think Scudder is that active physically. I don’t think he trains at the gym four times a week. He has a gun because they all have, but no, he’s not good physically.
Lawrence Block, the author of A Walk Among the Tombstones, thought you were the ideal actor to play Matt Scudder.
It was a little bit intimidating. Lawrence came on set and I was introduced to him and he said I was his first choice, ever since he saw Michael Collins. "Michael Collins?" my brain was going: "What was it in Michael Collins that he made that connection?" It was a wee bit intimidating.
The film is the scriptwriter Scott Frank’s first as a director. Did he seem nervous?
Yeah, sometimes he seemed a little bit nervous and he would share that, which was lovely. But he would always come up with an answer, he’d know how to shoot a scene. He always seemed to do it in an interesting way. And he would always do his homework. I think that’s important for a director, because if you’re a director there are 200 people who arrive on set every day and they look to you and you have to say something. He was good. I would love to work with him again. He’s a very bright man. He’s a family guy, very wholesome.
There are actors playing roles you wouldn’t expect them to play, including Dan Stevens.
A heroin trafficker from Downton Abbey. I think it was Scott who said: "Did you see Downton Abbey? That's Dan, Dan plays Lady Mary's husband." I said: "Are you sure?" But he had lost so much weight and changed himself physically. He's very good, he's a lovely actor.
Your character has shades of grey to him – is he a good guy?
I think so, yeah. When the chips are down he’d do the right thing.
What can the audience expect?
There are some scary moments. I hope they really follow it – it’s got quite an intricate little plot. I guess the Lawrence Block audience, because he has a huge following, I guess they will go and see it. I haven’t heard from any fans of the book yet, but perhaps I will when the film comes out.
Scudder appears in a series of books – would you be interested in another big-screen outing for the character?
I know Scott Frank would love to, I certainly would. He’s got more adventures – Lawrence has written 15 or 16 books on the guy.
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