Despite having a superstar in the lead, films often fail to impress at the box office and something similar happened with Kim Jee-woon’s The Last Stand (2013). The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as Sherrif Ray Owens alongside Jaimie Alexander as Deputy Sarah Torrance.

The Last Stand

The Last Stand, with a 61% score on Rotten Tomatoes, has received mixed reviews from fans and critics alike. While the film has its shortcomings, it might be a bit enjoyable depending on your taste. However, the film performed poorly at the box office making little to no profit. While Arnold Schwarzenegger had to face the box office bomb, there was an actor who was sighing with relief – Liam Neeson.

Arnold Schwarzenegger Replaced Liam Neeson

Liam Neeson

Before Arnold Schwarzenegger got on board The Last Stand wagon, Liam Neeson was being considered for the lead role. As reported by Deadline, Neeson kept pushing the film due to scheduling conflicts. Eventually, Lionsgate grew tired of waiting around and decided to look for other actors for the role. In an interview with Coming Soon, director Kim Jee-woon stated,
“There is a short list that we are interested in having for the film, so we are actively casting but nothing has been signed.”

Enter Schwarzenegger who had just recently completed his run as the Governor of California. The on-and-off project appealed to Schwarzenegger who said yes to playing the role of the Sherrif. While it is intriguing to imagine Neeson in place of the True Lies actor, he surely dodged a bullet on this one with respect to the box office failure. Made on a budget of $45 million, The Last Stand only made a little over $48 million at the box office.

The film also stars Jaimie Alexander who is popularly known for her role in Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Thor franchise. Alexander stated that her younger brother was so excited that she was going to be working with Schwarzenegger that he asked her to get his True Lies DVD signed.

Arnold Schwarzenegger Talks about The Last Stand

Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Last Stand

During the premiere of The Last Stand, Schwarzenegger appeared gleeful about his work. He stated that The Last Stand was quite different for him as he had to play a sensitive character.
“This film was a lot different for me even though it’s action-packed, because I have to play a guy who is sensitive to my team. And we have lots of laughs like in True Lies.”
In an interview with BodyBuilding.com, Schwarzenegger stated that he loved working on The Last Stand and that the role came naturally to him. He added that he “felt good” during the filming and praised the director for his passion.

“I just slipped into it in a natural way and felt good about being on the set, doing the scenes, handling all the weapons, doing the action, the stunts, and all that. Kim Ji-woon was very passionate, very enthusiastic. [The Last Stand] is a story about being the underdog, when no one expects anything. The movie is about convincing everyone to rise up and be part of the team and not just talking about it.”
Well, it looks like when you keep the box office ordeal aside, Schwarzenegger had a great time being a part of the film.