In 2009, audiences were definitely Taken by Liam Neeson as the new Charles Bronson of action movies as Bryan Mills, a former spy who used his “particular set of skills” to rescue his kidnapped daughter (Maggie Grace) from sex traffickers in Paris. That film led to two successful sequels and a prequel series that lasted two seasons on NBC with Clive Standen.
In the summer of 2010, Neeson became the man with a plan known as Colonel Hannibal Smith, the gray-haired, cigar-smoking leader of The A-Team. Based on the classic action-comedy that aired on NBC from 1983 to 1987, the movie also Bradley Cooper as Lt. Templeton Peck, aka the charming Faceman; Sharlto Copley as Capt. Howling Mad “H.M.” Murodck, the wild and crazy pilot, and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson as Sgt. Bosco Baracus, who has a bad attitude – and a fear of flying.
An elite unit of Army Rangers, the team is the best in specializing the ridiculous and the impossible. But when they are framed and convicted for a crime they didn’t commit, the team must break out of prison, clear their names, and bring the real guilty party to justice.
The movie featured cameos from original stars Dirk Benedict (Face) and Dwight Schultz (Murdock). Unlike the television series, though, The A-Team didn’t become a blockbuster at the box office, and plans for a sequel and/or potential franchise were shelved. The same way we watched how and why Robin Hood became a legend with Russell Crowe in the role, we followed how and why Hannibal, Face, Murdock and B.A. became The A-Team on the big screen. The film ended with them the same way FOX’s 24 ended for Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) in season eight: burned by the system, wanted by the government, on the run, and living underground.
But like Robin Hood and his merry men, and Jack Bauer, The A-Team are a band of brothers who still believes in doing the right thing.