The Naked Gun: Liam Neeson on why he wanted to star in the reboot

It may seem sacrilegious to reboot The Naked Gun, but if anyone can fill the brilliantly deadpan shoes of Leslie Nielsen, it will be Liam Neeson. The actor has been attached to the reboot for a few years, but the project finally seems to be moving forward, with production expected to kick off later this year.

While speaking with THR, Liam Neeson was asked why he wanted to tackle a flat-out comedy such as The Naked Gun.

“It’s funny because right before Christmas, my sons and I were looking through the Academy screeners and trying to find something silly, some silly, stupid movie that we could giggle at,” Neeson explained. “There was none, of course, as they were all very heavy and international. I mean, brilliant movies but all very heavy. When Seth MacFarlane approached me about it — this was about two years ago, now — I thought, yeah, I guess I could do that as long as I play it dead seriously and not try and imitate Mr. Leslie Nielsen. He was wonderful. Akiva Schaffer is directing it and he’s from the [Saturday Night Live] world. I’m looking forward to it. It’s a good script, and there’s a few laugh out loud moments in it.“

As Neeson mentioned, Akiva Schaffer is set to direct The Naked Gun reboot, which Dan Gregor and Doug Mand will script.

While Liam Neeson certainly has experience in the realm of comedy, with roles in A Million Ways to Die in the West, Ted 2, Life’s Too Short, and others, this will be his first time starring in a comedic role, which he recently confessed has left him feeling a little nervous. “I’m honored to be offered the part of Frank Drebin, and a little bit nervous about it because I’ve done a couple of skits before that were just very short TV things, but this would be, I don’t know, 95, 100 minutes of a film,” Neeson said. “They’re still casting it so hopefully my other cast members will be funny and sexy so that I could just be dead absolutely straight.“

The Naked Gun is slated for a July 18, 2025 release.