Liam Neeson Says He Once Walked Streets With a Weapon Hoping to Kill a 'Black B*****d' As Revenge: 'It Was Horrible, Horrible'

Liam Neeson opened up on his "awful" racially charged past, including an instance in which the actor roamed the streets with hopes of blundering a "black b*****d" to death. Neeson shared his former "horrible, horrible" and vengeful behavior during an interview with The Independent, which was released on Monday.

A friend of Neeson's revealed her rape, allegedly committed by a black man, to the Taken star years ago, which Neeson said ignited a rage in him. The 66-year-old said he was overseas when the rape occurred and was only informed on the terrible situation after he returned home to the U.K.

"She handled the situation of the rape in the most extraordinary way," Neeson said. "But my immediate reaction was…did she know who it was? No. What color were they? She said it was a black person."

Neeson's anger over the matter resulted in the Cold Pursuit actor trekking the streets with a weapon looking for revenge. "I went up and down areas with a cosh, hoping I'd be approached by somebody. I'm ashamed to say that, and I did it for maybe a week—hoping some 'black b*****d' would come out of a pub and have a go at me about something, you know? So that I could kill him."

Over the next couple of weeks, Neeson said he reflected on his behavior and regretted it. "It was horrible, horrible when I think back that I did that," he admitted, noting this was the first time he spoke about the incident.

The father-of-two said he learned an important lesson in hindsight. "It's awful, but I did learn a lesson from it when I eventually thought, 'What the f**k are you doing?'" he continued. "I understand that need for revenge, but it just leads to more revenge, to more killing and more killing."

Neeson's story sparked a wave of criticism from fans online, some of whom called the actor a racist in light of his past behavior while others were empathetic of Neeson using the moment to learn from his ways.

Neeson's revelation isn't the first time the Schindler's List star has stirred up controversy. The actor was the target of social media outrage after he commented on the #MeToo movement. Although Neeson supported the millions of women sharing their trials of sexual assault and harassment, which was initially sparked by an outpour of women speaking out against fallen Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein's sexual misconduct, he upset masses when he noted the rising claims against men was turning into "a bit of a witch hunt."

See a few reactions to Neeson's interview with The Independent below.