Starring Liam Neeson, Taken was a big enough hit to spawn a whole trilogy, but the sequels didn’t always live up to the excitement of the original. Neeson unexpectedly changed the course of his career when he took on the role of Bryan Mills, an ex-CIA agent with “a very particular set of skills,” in Taken. After Taken was a surprise box office success, Neeson was launched into a career renaissance as an action hero and the movie was promptly followed by sequels. Taken 2 took the action to Istanbul, where a different member of Mills’ family was taken. Taken 3 saw Mills framed for a crime he didn’t commit.