UPDATE: Deadline is reporting that Liam Neeson and Luc Besson have reached an agreement.
Taken 2 was inevitable. The fact that it is being made really doesn’t surprise anyone. What is surprising though is that it may be made without Liam Neeson. Deadline is reporting that firstly, Luc Besson is working on a script with Robert Mark Kamen, and that he is talking to director Olivier Megaton in hopes that he will hop behind the camera for the film. What is more interesting though is that Neeson has withdrawn from the project, due to scheduling issues.
He wants time off and Besson wants to shoot it this year. It wouldn’t be the same film if Neeson doesn’t star but that doesn’t seem to bother Besson. He has already put together a list of possible replacements that includes: Mickey Rourke, Ralph Fiennes, Ray Winstone, Sean Bean and Jason Isaacs.
Deadline tells us that it seems as if Neeson and Besson are back in negotiations, trying to find a time that will work for both of them, but as of now, nothing is official and Taken 2 may go ahead without Neeson. Bad call if you ask me.
What do you think?