Anna Daniels
Neeson will follow The Marksman with a trio of popcorn movies that’ll see him shilling for laughs (Made In Italy), traversing icy Canadian landscapes in a truck (The Ice Road), and — you guessed it — kick a little more keister as an assassin for hire in Martin Campbell’s Memory. Of course, if you’re like us, and more keen to see Neeson do some proper character work in a lower key project, he’s got you covered there as well.
Though the film is probably a couple of years off (it’s currently listed as being in pre-production), Charlie Johnson in the Flames will see Neeson stir up political intrigue as a journalist hunting for answers from a blood-thirsty Colonel after seeing the man commit a horrific war crime. Based on Michael Ignatieff’s lauded novel of the same name, Charlie Johnson in the Flames will transpose the action from Kosovo to the African continent, and presumably focus more on the continuous violence and troubles plaguing much of that area.
Just FYI — those of you who think that this synopsis sounds suspiciously like a pitch-perfect setup for Taken 4 should know that Charlie Johnson in the Flames is very much a political thriller and not an action movie. That means that the only thing Neeson’s journalist is looking for on his hunt for the aforementioned Colonel is answers — so don’t expect the actor to be kung-fu fighting across the continent in search of bloody vengeance. Still, we also wouldn’t be surprised to see the action star throw a punch or two along the way.
Written by: Looper
