'I speak to her every day': Liam Neeson talks to late wife Natasha at her grave as if she were present
Actor Liam Neeson was devastated when his wife, actress Natasha Richardson, died unexpectedly. The actor's life without her was challenging, but he persevered while raising his two boys. In a 2020 interview with Inquirer.net, Liam revealed that he speaks at her grave as if she is present. "I speak to her every day at her grave, which is about a mile and a half down the road," said Liam, who lives in upstate New York. "I go down there quite often so I do speak to her as if she's here. Not that she answers me," he added. Liam's wife died in 2009 after a nasty fall on a ski slope in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec. According to the ski resort, she fell on a beginner trail.
Paramedics reportedly reached the hill 17 minutes after the incident. Richardson, however, refused help and said she was fine. Paramedics then left the scene, leaving the actress at the resort's clinic for treatment. However, four hours later, an emergency call was received from Richardson's hotel room as Natasha's condition was deteriorating, although she was conscious and able to communicate with her, although she appeared unstable.
READ MORE
From Liam Neeson to Danny Moder: A look at Julia Roberts' dating history as she turns 55
An ambulance arrived at the hotel nine minutes after the 911 call was made and she was immediately taken to the hospital for treatment. There they found that she had an epidural hematoma, a condition that "causes bleeding between the skull and the covering of the brain."
The most common cause of hemorrhage is a skull fracture. Specialists claim that this can lead to a blood clot that puts pressure on the brain, causing it to slope downward and strain the brainstem, which controls breathing and other vital functions. Because symptoms of hemorrhage take time to appear, people like Richardson who suffer this injury usually feel fine right away. However, experts believe the condition could have been treatable if the problem had been recognized and the victim was taken to a hospital as soon as possible.
When Neeson heard about what had happened when he was filming in Toronto at the time, he rushed to the hospital where his wife was. Sadly, they would not allow him to see her. He recalled saying: "I walked into the emergency (room) – it's like 70, 80 people, broken arms, black eyes, all that – and for the first time in years, nobody recognizes me. Not the nurses. The patients. No one. I've come all this way, and they won't let me see her." When Neeson encountered a nurse who knew him, he considered his next move as he stepped outside. The woman directed him to his wife's room, where he found a crowd of medical professionals. Then doctors told Neeson that Richardson was brain dead.
He knew his wife was dying and all he could do was say a few last words to her and fulfill a promise they had made together. What he said was, "She and I had made a pact. If any of us got into a vegetative state we'd pull the plug. You know? So when I saw her and saw all these tubes and stuff, that was my immediate thought. Was, 'Okay, these tubes have to go. She's gone.'"
Neeson agreed to allow the doctors to take her off life support after the one-way conversation. That decision forever altered the course of his life. The actor chose to remain low-key and avoid the media after Richardson's death. He did not make any statements about what happened in 2016, but he paid tribute to her. As he spoke, he discussed how it was the hardest moment of his life when he lost her unexpectedly. Neeson shared: "Those 16 years of being her husband taught me how to love unconditionally. We have to stop and be thankful for our spouses. Because, one day, when you look up from your phone, they won't be there anymore."
The actor buried his wife of 16 years a mile and a half from his home in upstate New York, and he has admitted to going there often to talk to her. He says she's not a great conversationalist since she never answers him, but he still does it anyway. In addition, he said that he converses with the spirits of some other deceased actors.
Even though Neeson moved on with his life, he held onto the things he learned from his wife, including how to love unconditionally. Micheál and Daniel, one of whose acting genes passed on to him and who has starred in Hollywood movies, were particularly fortunate to grow up in such a nurturing environment.
Performing alongside his father in the film "Made In Italy," Michael has made the film a success. The story revolved around a bereaved father-son duo and their attempts to cope with the sudden demise of their family matriarch. As the roles mirrored what happened to Neeson and his son, the older actor was challenged, which led him to work hard with his son on the project.