Michelle Rodriguez defends Liam Neeson in race row

Michelle Rodriguez has come to the defence of Liam Neeson, following the race row that has engulfed the Irish actor.

Neeson revealed in an interview with The Independent that 40 years ago, after learning a close friend had been raped by a black assailant, he had planned a racially motivated revenge attack.

Though he did not carry out the attack, and said that he was horrified with himself afterwards and sought help from a priest, he has come under heavy criticism for the comments.

But Rodriguez, who starred with Neeson in director Steve McQueen’s remake of Widows, has said that she does not believe he is a racist.

She told Vanity Fair: “It’s all f*****’ bull****. Liam Neeson is not a racist.

“Dude, have you watched Widows? His tongue was so far down Viola Davis’s throat. You can’t call him a racist, ever.

“Racists don’t make out with the race that they hate, especially in the way he does with his tongue — so deep down her throat. I don’t care how good of an actor you are.

“Ignore it. He’s not a racist. He’s a loving man. It’s all lies.”

Terry Crews has also commented on the matter, tweeting:

He later told Newsweek that the remark was ‘a description, not a defence’.

Following the comments, which were made during a press junket for his latest movie, Cold Pursuit, Neeson appeared on Good Morning America and tried to clarify the situation.

“I’m not a racist,” he told host Robin Roberts on Tuesday, adding that he’d felt a ‘primal urge to lash out’ after discovering his friend had been raped.

“I went out deliberately into black areas in the city, looking to be set upon. It shocked me and it hurt me. I did seek help, I went to a priest.”

Since the admission, a red carpet event in New York was cancelled, as well as an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Read more
Should you read If Beale Street Could Talk first?
Alita: Battle Angel on Time’s Up 4% Challenge
VFX tech invented for Alita: Battle Angel