LIAM NEESON has a new movie out this week, just days after he sparked a huge racism storm with comments made in a promotional interview.
Liam Neeson discusses his new film ‘Cold Pursuit’
Yesterday Neeson sparked backlash as he recalled a time in which he looked “for a black b*****d” he “could kill” after learning of his friend’s rape. There has been an outpouring of outrage on social media ever since, with the publication that conducted the interview – The Independent – even releasing the original audio clip of his remarks. So will Cold Pursuit’s box office performance be affected as a result?
Neeson had said, seemingly unprovoked: “God forbid you’ve ever had a member of your family hurt under criminal conditions. I’ll tell you a story. This is true.”
Recalling being told of his friend’s rape, he went on: “She handled the situation of the rape in the most extraordinary way.
“But my immediate reaction was… I asked, did she know who it was? No. What colour were they? She said it was a black person.
“I went up and down areas with a cosh, hoping I’d be approached by somebody – I’m ashamed to say that – and I did it for maybe a week, hoping some [air quotes] ‘black b*****d’ would come out of a pub and have a go at me about something, you know? So that I could kill him.”
Cold Pursuit is out this week (Image: GETTY • STUDIO STILL)
The movie has had good reviews (Image: STUDIO STILL)
“It was horrible, horrible, when I think back, that I did that,” he later added.
“And I’ve never admitted that, and I’m saying it to a journalist. God forbid.
“It’s awful. But I did learn a lesson from it, when I eventually thought, ‘What the f**k are you doing,’ you know?”
The interview had originally been set up to promote the release of Cold Pursuit, a new thriller very much of the genre Neeson’s audience will be used to.
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The movie had initially been projected for a $12-15 million US opening (Image: STUDIO STILL)
The film has had generally positive reviews, and currently stands on 92% on Rotten Tomatoes.
But will this huge media storm impact its takings, and Neeson’s career as a whole?
Piers Morgan certainly thinks so – he said on GMB today: “I can’t think of anything more staggering that’s come out of a movie star’s mouth.
“I would be very surprised if Liam Neeson’s career is not now in very serious trouble.
“If I was a black person, I would not want to see this guy’s movies. So racist.”
Back in December, BoxOffice.com published its long-range projections that expected the film to make between $10-15 million (US) in its first weekend; going on to achieve a $40 million total domestically.
In January, Deadline revised the forecast to between $12-15 million.
But in the wake of yesterday’s backlash, the film’s social channels have been swamped by moviegoers saying it is in dire trouble.
Moviegoers have been speculating over the future of Neeson’s career (Image: GETTY)
“Sorry…a hard pass after the interview that was just released. #PRTeamMayNotBeAbleToHelpYaOnThisOne,” said one user on Twitter.
“This movie won’t age well,” wrote another.
A third person started the hashtag #ColdPursuitBoycott, while another said: “I think this movie will tank bad after what Liam Neeson said in the interview.”
But will the interview make a noticeable impact on the box office receipts? We’ll have to wait until the weekend to find out for sure.
