When you think of “action stars,” Arnold, Sly, and Bruce would be the Big 3, at least of the last 30 years or so, then there’s more recent high-profile guys like Christian Bale, Will Smith, and Russell Crowe, then there’s the 2nd- and 3rd- tier guys like Van Damme, Seagal, Jason Statham, and of course your old-school guys like Chuck Norris, Steve McQueen, Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson, Clint, etc.
Then there’s guys like… Liam Neeson. Sure, he’s a big guy, looks to be in decent shape, has a great, gravelly “tough guy” voice, and is even a decent actor, but when you look at his overall body of work, he’s much more of a serious, dramatic actor, very appropriate to films such as Michael Collins, Rob Roy, Schindler’s List, and the like.
Until recently, that is. The past few years have seen him in starring action-hero roles in Taken, The A-Team, Unknown, and the current The Grey.
Other actors (and actresses) I’d put in this category are Tobey Maguire (Spiderman series), Sigourney Weaver (Aliens series), Adrien Brody (Predators), and Kate Beckinsale (Underworld series).
Who else you got?