Liam Neeson reveals he was considered for James Bond in the 1990s

The Ballymena native said that he passed up the chance to play the iconic character because it would have ruined his relationship with his late wife Natasha Richardson.

During an appearance on NBC’s The Rich Eisen Show, the actor was grilled on a series of rumours as part of a “Celebrity True or False” segment.

Answering a question, Liam recalled a period in the nineties where he was in the running to play 007 in Goldeneye before Pierce Brosnan was eventually casted as the secret agent.

He said the film’s producers “were interested in me following Schindler’s List, but I know they were also interested in three or four other actors. No, I was not offered it – they sent out feelers. They wanted to see if I was interested in it.”

“I remember my dear, departed wife said to me — we were shooting a film in North Carolina called Nell — and she looked at me straight in the face and she said, ‘Liam, if you’re offered this and if you do it, you know we can’t get married.' And that was it.”

He also joked that any time he and Richardson would have “little arguments”, he would tease her by singing the famous 007 theme tune.

Liam Neeson and Natasha Richardson first met in 1993 while working on a revival of the play Anna Christie on Broadway.

The pair got married in 1994 and had two sons together: Micheal, who is now also an actor, and Daniel.

Richardson tragically died in 2009 after sustaining a head injury during a skiing accident.