At 72, Liam Neeson stands at a fascinating crossroads in his career. The man who turned “I will find you, and I will kill you” into a cultural phenomenon is now wielding that same gravelly menace in service of something entirely different: comedy. THE NAKED GUN, hitting theaters this Friday, represents more than just another reboot—it’s a potential pivot point for one of cinema’s most unlikely action stars.
Neeson’s journey from dramatic heavyweight to geriatric action hero has been one of Hollywood’s most surprising second acts. After establishing himself as a serious actor in films like SCHINDLER’S LIST, the Irish performer found unexpected late-career gold in TAKEN, transforming himself into an unlikely action star well past the age when most actors retire their leather jackets. But THE NAKED GUN suggests Neeson might be ready for his third act, following in the footsteps of Leslie Nielsen, who famously abandoned dramatic roles to become comedy royalty.
Playing Detective Lieutenant Frank Drebin Jr., son of Nielsen’s iconic character, Neeson delivers what can only be described as his silliest performance yet—and that’s saying something for an actor who recently battled wolves on ice and taken on entire crime syndicates single-handedly. His voice, that rumbly instrument of threat that has launched a thousand memes, now serves punchlines instead of ultimatums. The transition is both jarring and oddly natural, as if all those years of deadpan intensity in increasingly ridiculous action scenarios were merely preparation for this moment.
The film itself, directed by Akiva Schaffer and written by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, exists in that peculiar space of being a spoof of a spoof, paying homage to the original while updating its targets for contemporary audiences. Where the original NAKED GUN films lampooned the crime dramas and action films of their era, this iteration takes aim at the slick, tech-obsessed thrillers that have dominated the past two decades. Neeson’s Drebin Jr. investigates a death involving a high-tech electric car and its Musk-like inventor, played with appropriate menace by Danny Huston.
But it’s Neeson’s chemistry with Pamela Anderson, playing true-crime novelist Beth, that provides the film’s most surprising element. Their romance unfolds with the kind of absurdist logic that made the original films classics, complete with an extended winter-sports pop video sequence that feels like a fever dream collaboration between Wham! and the Zucker brothers. Anderson, making her own unexpected career pivot, proves a capable comedy partner, matching Neeson’s deadpan delivery with her own perfectly timed reactions.
The most intriguing aspect of Neeson’s performance is how it plays with audience expectations. We’ve become so accustomed to his particular brand of middle-aged vengeance that hearing him deliver ridiculous one-liners while maintaining that same intensity creates an almost surreal viewing experience. It’s method acting applied to parody, and the results are both hilarious and slightly unnerving.
Whether Neeson will follow Nielsen’s path and commit fully to comedy remains to be seen. He certainly has more dramatic credibility to potentially sacrifice than Nielsen did when he made his own transition from FORBIDDEN PLANET to AIRPLANE! But there’s something liberating about watching a performer of Neeson’s stature embrace the ridiculous so completely. In an industry increasingly obsessed with franchise building and cinematic universes, THE NAKED GUN offers something refreshingly simple: an excuse to watch a legendary actor have fun with his own image.
The film may be, as one observer noted, “amiably ridiculous, refreshingly shallow, entirely pointless and guilelessly crass,” but in our current cultural moment, perhaps that’s exactly what we need. Sometimes the most radical thing an actor can do is stop taking themselves so seriously, and Neeson’s willingness to trade gravitas for gags suggests a performer still willing to surprise us, even five decades into his career.
Caitriona Balfe has just landed her next major role in THE HOUSEKEEPER.
Set in a grand historic manor against Cornwall`s dramatic landscape, Balfe plays Danni, a housekeeper who falls into a forbidden affair with none other than writer Daphne du Maurier (played by Mackenzi Laird).
While we`re counting down to OUTLANDER`s final season premiere on Mar 6th, Balfe is already proving she`s so much more than Claire Fraser. 🔥
More Caitriona at irishfilmtv.com.
After over 20 years of mesmerizing us on screen, Saoirse Ronan is ready to call the shots—literally.
The four-time Oscar nominee is making her directorial debut with PAPER PLANE, an Irish short film she`s also writing, and honestly, this feels like the natural next chapter for someone who`s been acting since she was nine years old.
Details about PAPER PLANE are still under wraps, but with Ronan`s track record, expectations are sky-high. What are you most excited to see from her behind the camera? 🎬
More Saoirse at irishfilmtv.com.
Louis Paxton`s Sundance 2026 debut THE INCOMER stars Domhnall Gleeson, Gayle Rankin, and Grant O`Rourke in a trio that`s equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking.
Think fish-out-of-water meets generational grief, wrapped in the warmth of fireside hot chocolate. Sometimes the scariest thing isn`t a legendary Fin Man—it`s letting go of the past.
Have you ever held onto something because changing felt like betrayal?
More Domhnall at irishfilmtv.com.
🎸 THE BEATLES ARE COMING BACK TO CINEMAS.
Four films. Four perspectives. One legendary band.
Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney. Harris Dickinson as John Lennon. Joseph Quinn as George Harrison. Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr.
The first look just dropped via postcards hidden around Liverpool`s performing arts campus and honestly?
The hype is REAL. 🔥
Sam Mendes is directing all four films, each told from a different Beatle`s POV, and they`re ALL releasing on the same day—April 7, 2028.
Which Beatle`s story are you most excited to see? 👇
Irish talent is absolutely dominating the 2026 BAFTA nominations! 🇮🇪✨
Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal both scored major noms for HAMNET, with Buckley up for Leading Actress as Agnes and Mescal recognized for Supporting Actor as William Shakespeare. The film has basically swept the nominations, breaking records left and right.
But that`s just the beginning. Andrew Scott landed on the longlist for BLUE MOON, Robbie Ryan got recognized for his stunning cinematography on BUGONIA, and even Cillian Murphy appears as a producer on the STEVE longlist.
From performers to cinematographers to production companies like Element Pictures and Wild Atlantic Pictures, Irish voices are everywhere in this year`s race.
The ceremony hits London on February 22nd. The world is watching Irish cinema right now, and what a moment to witness. 🎬🔥
#Ireland #Irish #Movies #Film #Television #TV #Cinema #Irishmovies #IrishFilm #IrishCinema #Actor #ActorsLife #IrishActor #BAFTA #BAFTAs #BAFTA2026 #JessieBuckley #PaulMescal #AndrewScott #CillianMurphy #RobbieRyan #Hamnet #AwardsSeason #IrishTalent #FilmTwitter #Filmmaking #IrishProud
Aidan Turner is about to prove the pen is mightier than the sword 🗡️
Fresh from his scene-stealing turn as Declan O`Hara in RIVALS, Turner takes on one of literature`s most dangerously charismatic figures: the Vicomte de Valmont in DANGEROUS LIAISONS.
Mar 21 to Jun 6 at @nationaltheatre - more at irishfilmtv.com.
Andrew Scott delivers a coolly contained Richard Rodgers in BLUE MOON, now streaming.
Set over one night inside Sardi`s restaurant during the 1943 opening of OKLAHOMA!, it unfolds as a rueful, jazz-inflected chamber piece—talky, intimate, devastating.
More BLUE MOON at irishfilmtv.com.
🎬 Aidan Gillen is heading back to the dark side of London for DRIVER, a gritty British crime romance that pairs him with the phenomenal @dafnekeen!
Gillen plays Trey, a reclusive ex-con turned night driver navigating London`s after-hours underworld, while Keen takes on Camden, a sharp and restless young woman working as a call girl. What begins as chance encounters evolves into something fragile, intimate, and charged with tension.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
Paul Mescal and Josh O`Connor are bringing something truly special to THE HISTORY OF SOUND 🎵✨
The two actors sang, reminisced, and opened up about this intimate musical journey. Recording onto actual wax cylinders gave them a tangible connection to their characters` world—the fragility of the medium mirrors the fragility of memory itself.
They revealed which Beatles song their characters would love and discussed the upcoming Beatles biopics. What emerges most powerfully is the chemistry between them—THE HISTORY OF SOUND is ultimately about how music becomes the language through which we express what words cannot capture 🎬🎶
#Ireland #Irish #Movies #Film #Television #TV #Cinema #Irishmovies #IrishFilm #IrishCinema #Actor #ActorsLife #IrishActor #PaulMescal #JoshOConnor #TheHistoryOfSound #IndieFilm #MovieNews #FilmLovers #CinemaLovers #MusicInFilm #PeriodDrama #BritishCinema #Acting #Cinephile #NewRelease #thebeatles
🎬✨ The nominations are IN!
The 2026 @iftaacademy Awards are celebrating another extraordinary year of Irish storytelling that`s captured hearts around the world.
The future of Irish film and drama has never looked brighter. 🇮🇪🎭
#Ireland #Irish #Movies #Film #Television #TV #Cinema #Irishmovies #IrishFilm #IrishCinema #Actor #ActorsLife #IrishActor #IFTA #IFTAAwards #IFTAAwards2026 #FilmAwards #CiarànHinds #KevinMcGahern #DublinEvents #IrishTalent #Filmmaking #Awards #AwardSeason #IrishDrama #Storytelling #FilmIndustry #IrishCreatives
Westeros is trading dragonfire for something a bit more human!
Set nearly a century before GAME OF THRONES, HBO’s latest venture into the world of Ice and Fire, A KNIGHT OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS, is now on #HBO.
First look trailer at irishfilmtv.com.
** NEW TRAILER ALERT **
Fresh off her 2026 Golden Globe win for HAMNET, Ireland`s own Jessie Buckley delivers a career-defining performance in Maggie Gyllenhaal`s audacious reimagining of a classic monster tale.
Set in gritty 1930s Chicago, THE BRIDE! transforms Frankenstein`s silent companion into a revolutionary force of nature—murdered, resurrected, and absolutely refusing to play by anyone`s rules.
Watch now at irishfilmtv.com.
Lisa McGee (yes, the genius behind DERRY GIRLS) is back with HOW TO GET TO HEAVEN FROM BELFAST and it sounds absolutely unhinged in the best way possible.
Three childhood friends—chaotic TV writer Saoirse, stressed mum-of-three Robyn, and dependable Dara—reunite for the wake of their estranged fourth friend. What starts as a simple journey across Ireland quickly spirals into something darker when eerie events unfold and a buried childhood secret threatens to surface.
Mark your calendars for February 2026 because this Irish odyssey is going to be unmissable!
#Ireland #Irish #Movies #Film #Television #TV #Cinema #Irishmovies #IrishFilm #IrishCinema #Actor #ActorsLife #IrishActor #Netflix #NetflixSeries #LisaMcGee #DerryGirls #Belfast #ComediThriller #IrishDrama #IrishStories #MustWatch #ComingSoon #NewSeries #IrishWriters #IrishEntertainment #TVDrama #NetflixOriginal #BingeWorthy #IrishWomen
Fresh from wrapping THE IMMORTAL MAN, Cillian Murphy is teaming up with Daniel Craig and Michelle Williams for Damien Chazelle`s mysterious new prison drama—and the buzz is already deafening.
Production starts later this year through Chazelle`s Wild Chickens Productions, with Paramount distributing, but details remain sparse beyond the prison setting.
For Murphy, it`s another chance to do what he does best: portray men under impossible pressure with that signature intensity and precision. A contained prison environment with Craig and Williams?
That`s not just a movie—that`s a masterclass waiting to happen.
#Ireland #Irish #Movies #Film #Television #TV #Cinema #Irishmovies #IrishFilm #IrishCinema #Actor #ActorsLife #IrishActor #CillianMurphy #DamienChazelle #DanielCraig #MichelleWilliams #Hollywood #MovieNews #ComingSoon #Paramount #Oppenheimer #OscarWinner #PrisonDrama #NewMovie #FilmProduction #ActorLife
🎬 LEGENDARY BELFAST ACTOR CIARÁN HINDS TO RECEIVE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 🏆
From Belfast streets to Hollywood`s biggest stages, Ciarán Hinds has given us five decades of unforgettable performances.
The Irish Film & Television Academy is honoring this Oscar-nominated powerhouse with the Irish Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement at this year`s IFTA ceremony on February 20th.
Hinds has worked with everyone from Scorsese to Spielberg, shared the screen with icons like Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett, and earned nominations from the Oscars, Golden Globes, and BAFTAs. Whether in BELFAST (which earned him that Oscar nod), EXCALIBUR, or countless other projects, he`s brought depth, dignity, and raw talent to every role.
With new projects like Netflix`s EAST OF EDEN on the horizon, this Belfast-born legend continues to prove why he`s one of Ireland`s greatest exports to cinema. A true master of the craft. 👏
Congratulations, Ciarán! ✨
#Ireland #Irish #Movies #Film #Television #TV #Cinema #Irishmovies #IrishFilm #IrishCinema #Actor #ActorsLife #IrishActor #IFTA #IFTAAwards #LifetimeAchievement #CiaránHinds #Belfast #Oscar #BelfastMovie #IrishTalent #FilmAwards #IrishPride #CelebratingExcellence #IrishArts #ScreenLegend #ActingLegend
