After Neeson Comments, All Guns To Be Digitally Removed From âTaken 3â²
Liam Neeson, star of the âTakenâ film series has recently raised an objection towards the number of guns available to U.S. citizens. He went so far as to refer to the âover 300 million gunsâ estimated to be in America as âa [expletive] disgrace.â Neeson defended the use of firearms in the âTakenâ films during an interview in Dubai by saying, âA character like Bryan Mills going out with guns and taking revenge: itâs fantasy.â However, according to several sources from inside Hollywood, 20th Century Fox is going to reportedly be taking Neesonâs complaints to heart for the planned Blu-ray and DVD release of the third film in the âTakenâ franchise. âFrom what I understand, all firearms are going to be digitally removed from âTaken 3â² during the conversion process for home media,â said a source speaking on the condition of anonymity. The source would only confirm that they have âclose ties to 20th Century Fox businessâ and âknow what theyâre intending to doâ. The source continued to say that they believed, âFox didnât really want to do this but are calling his (Neesonâs) bluff after the outlandish statements he made that fly directly in the face of the Second Amendment.â This would not be the first time that firearms were digitally removed from a Hollywood film. Universalâs âE.T. the Extra-Terrestrialâ similarly had director Steven Spielberg digitally removing the guns held by law enforcement agents and replacing them with flashlights. As digital effects expert Richard Northrop explains, âIn the âE.T.â instance, it was significantly easier to accomplish as there were not any scenes of the guns actually firing. Doing this kind of editing for a film like âTaken 3â², will be quite the undertaking due the amount of gunplay that is featured. I imagine this change will delay the release of the DVD and Blu-ray editions by several months.â Northrop also postulates that, âthey may just have this digitally washed version as a bonusâ on the eventual home release. Regardless, Northrop adds that, âTheyâll still be able to market the home release of âTaken 3â² as âthe version youâve never seenâ, as it sure sounds like itâll be an entirely different film than the one currently in theaters.â Second Amendment advocates have begun to discuss this radical change to remove firearms from âTaken 3â² on social networking. William Harvell of Birmingham, AL posted on Facebook saying that, âThis is a chilling effect for the rest of Hollywood to begin toning down the use of guns in film. I believe weâll see this more and more and it will dovetail perfectly with the federal gun grab we all know is coming.â Rose Harris of Oklahoma, OK also agreed with Harvell on Facebook by saying she believes, âObama has something to do with this. Those Hollywood liberals like Lean Nelson (sic) are all in his pocket.â 20th Century Fox has not yet issued a formal statement in regards to Neesonâs recent statements while on the press junket for âTaken 3â².