Liam Neeson, known for portraying Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn in Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999), considers the Star Wars fandom “a cult.” He also expressed his opinion that the additional films and TV shows that have come out since the Disney acquisition have diluted the franchise as a whole.
In an interview with Conan O’Brien, Neeson weighed in for the second time, stating that the oversaturation of new canon media has “taken away the mystery and magic in a weird way.”
Qui-Gon Jinn was the master of Obi-Wan Kenobi, who would eventually go on to train Anakin Skywalker (aka Darth Vader). Neeson’s appearance as Qui-Gon Jinn was originally part of the prequel trilogy, a series of films still made by franchise creator George Lucas prior to the Disney takeover.
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Given that his role took place in the first film of the prequel trilogy, there was astronomical fan expectation in 1999 for what The Phantom Menace should be. Unfortunately, at the time, the film was ripped apart by critics and fans alike. Although Liam Neeson was and still is considered a highly respected actor with an incredible talent, he was caught up in the storm of negativity. It got to the point where he even threatened to quit his career.
Fast forward more than 20 years and Liam Neeson briefly reprised the role of Qui-Gon Jinn in the live-action TV series Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022). Ironically though, Neeson spoke in an interview with ComicBook, saying that he would only reprise the role if it was a new film and not a TV show.
Disney has held the reins of the Star Wars franchise for more than a decade and has been producing new media as part of a canon that starts with a clean slate, save for the original film trilogy, prequel film trilogy, and the Clone Wars animated series.
In spite of its resources, Disney has focused most of its new entries in the Star Wars franchise using TV shows, animated series, games, comic books, novels, and toys.
When talking with Conan, Liam Neeson also shared a story about one of his earliest memories with Ewan McGregor, shooting scenes for The Phantom Menace with their lightsabers. According to Neeson, they both mouthed the sound effects, prompting Lucas to step in and say, “Let’s cut there; boys, we can add that in later.”
Neeson also included his memory of the scene where Qui-Gon speaks with Watto, a junk dealer, to try to free Anakin from slavery. He was pondering over how to perform the scenes with a CG character who is represented with a tennis ball, and his hair/makeup artist advised him by saying “You could be a monkey smoking a pipe, no one is going to be looking at you.”
The latest project to feature Neeson is the action film Retribution, which sees the critically acclaimed Irish actor drives a vehicle that will explode if he gets out. See it in theaters now.