First pics of Liam Neeson in Taken 2 kick ass and take names

The man with “a particular set of skills” is back in this first still from TAKEN 2.  Liam Neeson returns to the role of Bryan Mills that put him on the action movie radar, this time with director Olvier Megaton (COLUMBIANA) at the helm.  Co-star hotties Famke Janssen and Maggie Grace return for the sequel as well.

Take aim:

In an interview with EW, Neeson talked about the sequel, giving a few details on the story, most of which we’ve already known since the announcement, but interesting nonetheless.

On the story:

“I’ve taken a job over in Istanbul looking after a sheik who is there, and afterward I discover that my wife’s going through a very bad time with her new husband. So I suggest she and my daughter come over for a few days and hang out with me in this amazing city. And then… [laughs] all this s—t happens, of course.”

On the timeframe and action quotient:

“The action is supposed to take place about a year or a year and a half after the first story. It’s a very clever sequel with the usual thrills and spills, but the ante is upped quite a bit in this one.”

On the bad guys, who are apparently the relatives of the people he killed in the first film:

“Yeah, I took out a lot of Albanian guys — smugglers and sex traffickers. They met grisly ends. So now it’s their uncles, brothers, fathers, who have motive to find this guy, come hell or high water.”

On who’s actually “taken” in this one:

“I’m taken — let’s put it that way. They kidnap him to humiliate him, torture him, and ultimately bring him back to the village in Albania where the boys from the original film came from. With the help of my daughter… she wants to help me escape from where these bad guys have me.”

The first TAKEN was a surprise for me, as it was for many who saw it.  The unrated cut is exceptionally more violent than the theaterical cut, which I naturally enjoyed.  I think it’s great that Neeson has found this “second career” of sorts as the action man.  For a 60 year old he’s pretty badass.

TAKEN 2 opens on October 5, 2012.