Liam Neeson says Family Guy creator, Seth McFarlane, has asked him to star in a reboot of The Naked Gun. The famed slapstick film franchise, starring comedy icon Leslie Nielsen as police investigator Lieutenant Frank Drebin, delivered three films between 1988 and 1994, initially capitalizing on the success of police drama spoof, Police Squad! With its ridiculous jokes and deadpan delivery from Nielsen, the series could always make audiences smile.

Unfortunately, Nielsen passed away in 2010, ending any possibility of him even making a cameo in a new era of Naked Gun films. To date, the idea of rebooting The Naked Gun hasn’t been given much publicity, and for some, the idea of remaking a series that Nielsen was such a big part of could be a sensitive issue. There aren’t a lot of actors who could come close to pulling off the sort of comedic sensibilities and timing that seemed to effortlessly come to Nielsen. The Naked Gun series seemed very much built for him and only him, but with the right motivation and creative input, the argument that a reboot could work is an interesting one. It’s been a while since the slapstick genre has succeeded at the box office, and in recent years particularly, the demand for good comedies has only grown as supply seems to wane.

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As things currently stand, it appears that McFarlane has been toying with the idea of bringing The Naked Gun back. Naturally, the first question that any fan of the comedy series will be asking is who would play Frank Drebin? Well, in a recent interview with People, Neeson revealed that he’s been asked by McFarlane to consider taking on the role. Comedy hasn’t really been something that the 69-year-old Neeson has spent much time pursuing throughout a career that has ranged from critically acclaimed drama to action movie dynamo. But that doesn’t seem too daunting of a reality for Neeson, who explained:

“I’ve been approached by Seth McFarlane and Paramount Studios to maybe resurrect the Naked Gun films. It’ll either finish my career or bring it in another direction. I honestly don’t know.”

At first consideration, Neeson doesn’t really appear to give off the same sort of comedic temperament as Nielsen once did. But, of course, this is an unfair comparison to make. No one is ever going to match what Nielsen gave the Naked Gun films, and therefore, it’s pointless to even try and repeat that with a new actor. Instead, Neeson offers a complete change for the franchise, giving him room to make his own version of the character and potentially taking a reboot to new (and different) comedic heights. Neeson is nothing if not versatile, as few could have expected that after starring in Schindler’s List, he would have gone on to a career as a lethal one-man army in films like Taken and The Grey.

And then there is McFarlane, whose comedic genius is well-established by this point. If he believes that Neeson could be the right choice for a Naked Gun reboot, then there’s plenty of reason to give him the benefit of the doubt. What’s more, is that Neeson seems like such an unlikely choice for the role that it’s clear McFarlane sees something in him that is inherently comedic. Surely, Neeson’s got a decent sense of humor – it’s hard to believe that anyone who has taken on some relatively preposterous action movie concepts over the years couldn’t have been slightly aware of the comedic elements at play. Hopefully, Neeson does take the chance to play Drebin, because as he says, it could very well take his career in a new direction.

Source: People

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Mike Jones
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Mike Jones is an author, screenwriter, world traveller and cinephile. His work has been featured in print and online in a variety of publications, and he’s also a Berlinale Talents alumnus. Cinema has always moved him in a big way and aside from having seen The Talented Mr Ripley more times than any other living person, he maintains a pretty darn healthy physical media collection. His favourite filmmakers include: Jordan Peele, David Lean, Alfred Hitchcock, Mike Leigh, Steven Spielberg, the Dardenne Brothers, Noah Baumbach, Michael Haneke, Barry Jenkins and Andrea Arnold. Often jet-lagged, Mike once turned down a certain A-list celebrity’s offer to join them for a night of partying after a strange encounter in an airport.

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