Entertainment
Natasha Richardson’s son wishes he could have ‘adult conversations’ with her now as he calls late mum his ‘best friend’
Natasha Richardson’s son has said he wishes he could have ‘adult conversations’ with his late mum now he’s older.
The actress, best known for starring in The Handmaid’s Tale, The Parent Trap and Wild Child, died aged 45 following a skiing accident in 2009.
She suffered an epidural haematoma – bleeding that occurs between the outer membrane of the brain and the skull – and is survived by husband Liam Neeson, who she married in 1994, and their two sons, Micheál, 25, and Daniel, 24.
Speaking about his mother, Micheál called the movie talent his ‘best friend’ and revealed how he wishes he could still speak to her.
He was just 14 years old when Natasha died.
‘She was a terrific, terrific mother. What I wish is I could have just these adult conversations with her, these random questions about the industry or music,’ he told Times 2.
‘I was a mama’s boy growing up and she was really my best friend. I mean we were all a close family, but Danny was my dad’s boy and I was my mum’s boy, for sure.’
Reflecting on Natasha’s death, Micheál said it was ‘so sudden’ and ‘unexpected’ and admits the loss sent him into a ‘head spin’.
He explained: ‘When it’s unexpected and it’s just a complete freak accident, it really sort of messes with your mind, whether you believe in fate or not… it can send you for a bit of a head spin, so you just latch on to the tiny little memories.’
Micheál added that he remembers his mum’s laugh and her cooking and is ‘incredibly grateful’ to be able to watch Natasha back onscreen, thanks to her movies.
He also touched on his ‘relatively normal’ childhood growing up with actors as parents and recalled how famous faces like Sir Ian McKellen and Ralph Fiennes would always be around.
Micheál, who changed his last name to Richardson from Neeson in honour of his mum, stars alongside his dad Liam in movie Made In Italy, released last year.
The film explores the idea of loss and follows a man and his son as they reunite in Italy to sell their holiday home, after the death of their wife and mother.
Made In Italy was penned by James D’Arcy, who actually wrote the script prior to Natasha’s death 12 years ago – and he says lead star Liam really responded ‘personally’ when he sent the script over to him.
It was Liam who suggested Micheál starred alongside him as his onscreen son.
On reading the script, Micheál said he felt his mum’s presence.
He said: ‘Reading the script was like, “What? This is so weird. Like, surely mum has a hand at, like, why this is happening right now.”‘
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