Liam Neeson has said he plans to retire from action films soon.

The Northern Irish actor, 68, who experienced a career revival after the 2008 thriller Taken, starring in films such as Non-Stop, Cold Pursuit, The Commuter and Run All Night, said he still has a few more in the pipeline but then is likely to call it a day.

He told US show Entertainment Tonight: “I’m 68 and a half, 69 this year.

“There’s a couple more I’m going to do this year, hopefully, Covid allowing us, there’s a couple in the pipeline and then I think that will probably be it.

“Well, unless I’m on a Zimmer frame or something.”

He added: “I love doing them. I love beating up guys half my age.”

Liam Neeson
Liam Neeson said the years are catching up with him (Niall Carson/PA)

However, he said he had a realisation recently while filming, adding: “I’ve just finished one in Australia and I had a fight scene with a kid – lovely, sweet actor called Taylor – and halfway through the fight I looked up, I was breathless and it didn’t cost him a cent, and I said, ‘Taylor, what age are you?’

“He said, ’25.’ I said, ‘That’s the age of my eldest son!'”

In 2019 Neeson was embroiled in a race row after he said in an interview that he harboured violent thoughts about killing a black person after someone close to him was raped.

The actor said he walked the streets armed with a weapon hoping he would be approached by someone so that he could kill them.

The red carpet at the premiere of his film Cold Pursuit was cancelled in the wake of his comments, as was an appearance on Stephen Colbert’s US talk show.