Liam Neeson has reportedly cancelled a scheduled appearance on Stephen Colbert’s US talk show after telling The Independent he once roamed the streets with a cosh, wanting to kill a “black bastard” after someone close to him was raped years ago.
The actor was set to appear on The Late Show to promote his new film Cold Pursuit, but The Wrap reports that – following the cancellation of the film’s premiere – he will be replaced by Oscar-nominated actor Glenn Close.
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Liam Neeson through the years
Show all 23
Liam Neeson through the years
1/23 March 1995
Liam Neeson stars In the movie ‘Rob Roy’
Getty
2/23 October 1996
Neeson poses with co-star Aidan Quinn (right) and director Neil Jordan (left) at the Los Angeles premiere of their new movie ‘Michael Collins’
AFP/Getty
3/23 March 2001
Neeson poses with the lightsaber he used in ‘Star Wars: The Phantom Menace’ at the ‘Movie Action for Children’ auction
AFP/Getty
4/23 May 2002
Liam Neeson attends the Tony Award nominees brunch
Getty
5/23 July 2002
Neeson attends the world premiere of ‘K-19: The Widowmaker’ in Westwood, California
Getty
6/23 August 2003
Neeson films scenes from ‘Kinsey’ at Grand Central Station, New York
Getty
7/23 September 2004
Neeson after a press conference for the movie ‘Kinsey’ during the Toronto International Film Festival
Getty
8/23 May 2005
Samuel L Jackson (left) and Neeson (right) pose with Chewbacca at the premiere of ‘Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith’
Getty
9/23 June 2005
Gary Oldman, Sir Michael Caine, Christian Bale, Katie Holmes, Morgan Freeman and Neeson arrive at the premiere of ‘Batman Begins’ at the Grauman's Chinese Theatre
Getty
10/23 September 2006
Pierce Brosnan (left) and Neeson attend the ‘Seraphim Falls’ press conference during the Toronto International Film Festival
Getty
11/23 September 2008
Neeson poses by the river Thames before a screening of the action movie ‘Taken’
Getty
12/23 June 2010
Neeson, Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, director Joe Carnahan, Sharlto Copley, and Bradley Cooper arrive at the premiere of their movie ‘The A-Team’
Getty
13/23 January 2011
Neeson at the premiere of ‘The Grey’ in Los Angeles
Getty
14/23 September 2012
Neeson poses next to the beach closet dedicated to him on the Promenade des Planches for the movie ‘Taken 2’
Getty
15/23 February 2013
Neeson presents an award at the Oscars
Getty
16/23 February 2014
Neeson holds his character from ‘The Lego Movie’ as he attends the premiere in New York
Getty
17/23 February 2014
Actors Michelle Dockery, Lupita Nyong’o, Neeson and Julianne Moore attend the premiere of their movie ‘Non-Stop’
Getty
18/23 November 2014
Maureen O’Hara accepts an Honorary Oscar from Clint Eastwood and Neeson
Getty
19/23 January 2015
Neeson signs posters as he attends a ‘Taken 3’ fan screening
Getty
20/23 February 2017
Neeson reprises his role from ‘Love Actually’ alongside Thomas Brodie-Sangster for Comic Relief’s ‘Red Nose Day Actually’
Getty
21/23 September 2017
Neeson appears on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’
Getty
22/23 January 2018
Neeson attends the premiere of ‘The Commuter’ in New York
Getty
23/23 February 2018
Neeson speaks after receiving an award for his career during the Golden Camera awards ceremony in Hamburg
AFP/Getty
1/23 March 1995
Liam Neeson stars In the movie ‘Rob Roy’
Getty
2/23 October 1996
Neeson poses with co-star Aidan Quinn (right) and director Neil Jordan (left) at the Los Angeles premiere of their new movie ‘Michael Collins’
AFP/Getty
3/23 March 2001
Neeson poses with the lightsaber he used in ‘Star Wars: The Phantom Menace’ at the ‘Movie Action for Children’ auction
AFP/Getty
4/23 May 2002
Liam Neeson attends the Tony Award nominees brunch
Getty
5/23 July 2002
Neeson attends the world premiere of ‘K-19: The Widowmaker’ in Westwood, California
Getty
6/23 August 2003
Neeson films scenes from ‘Kinsey’ at Grand Central Station, New York
Getty
7/23 September 2004
Neeson after a press conference for the movie ‘Kinsey’ during the Toronto International Film Festival
Getty
8/23 May 2005
Samuel L Jackson (left) and Neeson (right) pose with Chewbacca at the premiere of ‘Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith’
Getty
9/23 June 2005
Gary Oldman, Sir Michael Caine, Christian Bale, Katie Holmes, Morgan Freeman and Neeson arrive at the premiere of ‘Batman Begins’ at the Grauman's Chinese Theatre
Getty
10/23 September 2006
Pierce Brosnan (left) and Neeson attend the ‘Seraphim Falls’ press conference during the Toronto International Film Festival
Getty
11/23 September 2008
Neeson poses by the river Thames before a screening of the action movie ‘Taken’
Getty
12/23 June 2010
Neeson, Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, director Joe Carnahan, Sharlto Copley, and Bradley Cooper arrive at the premiere of their movie ‘The A-Team’
Getty
13/23 January 2011
Neeson at the premiere of ‘The Grey’ in Los Angeles
Getty
14/23 September 2012
Neeson poses next to the beach closet dedicated to him on the Promenade des Planches for the movie ‘Taken 2’
Getty
15/23 February 2013
Neeson presents an award at the Oscars
Getty
16/23 February 2014
Neeson holds his character from ‘The Lego Movie’ as he attends the premiere in New York
Getty
17/23 February 2014
Actors Michelle Dockery, Lupita Nyong’o, Neeson and Julianne Moore attend the premiere of their movie ‘Non-Stop’
Getty
18/23 November 2014
Maureen O’Hara accepts an Honorary Oscar from Clint Eastwood and Neeson
Getty
19/23 January 2015
Neeson signs posters as he attends a ‘Taken 3’ fan screening
Getty
20/23 February 2017
Neeson reprises his role from ‘Love Actually’ alongside Thomas Brodie-Sangster for Comic Relief’s ‘Red Nose Day Actually’
Getty
21/23 September 2017
Neeson appears on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’
Getty
22/23 January 2018
Neeson attends the premiere of ‘The Commuter’ in New York
Getty
23/23 February 2018
Neeson speaks after receiving an award for his career during the Golden Camera awards ceremony in Hamburg
AFP/Getty
Neeson has faced a huge backlash following his comments that were published in The Independent on Monday. The following day, he appeared on Good Morning America where he insisted he is not racist. However, many believed he “made [matters] worse” with the appearance.
Speaking about his interview with The Independent, Neeson said: “We were doing a press junket and the topic of our film was revenge.
"The lady journalist [Clémence Michallon] was asking, ‘How do you tap into that?’ and I remembered an incident nearly 40 years ago when a friend of mine was brutally raped I was out of the country and when I came back she told me about this.
He continued: “I had never felt this feeling before which was a primal urge to lash out.”
In the wake of the backlash, Men in Black fans are calling for Neeson to be removed from the new film, Men in Black: International, ahead of its release in June.
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Independent Minds Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Minds. It allows our most engaged readers to debate the big issues, share their own experiences, discuss real-world solutions, and more. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when they can to create a true meeting of independent minds. The most insightful comments on all subjects will be published daily in dedicated articles. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies to your comment.
The existing Open Comments threads will continue to exist for those who do not subscribe to Independent Minds. Due to the sheer scale of this comment community, we are not able to give each post the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate. Please continue to respect all commenters and create constructive debates.