Viewers lift Liam Neeson’s 99-minute Certified Fresh sci-fi thriller to Prime Video hit
One of Neeson’s most underrated recent films pits him against a very different sort of threat.
If you thought Liam Neeson was finished with his tough-guy phase, think again. In 2026, he turned up in a ridiculous, surprisingly entertaining sci-fi horror flick called Cold Storage, which barely made a ripple in cinemas but is suddenly getting a second wind thanks to streaming. The idea is simple: when a parasitic alien fungus gets loose, you need someone with a very particular set of skills. Who else but Neeson?
The Plot: Fungi and Mayhem
So here’s what you’re dealing with. Neeson plays Robert Quinn, a man who, years ago, managed to halt the spread of an extraterrestrial organism. Sensibly, you’d think the authorities would finish the job – but no, instead, they locked it up in an underground vault in Kansas and promptly forgot about it. Naturally, things go sideways when the vault fails, and old man Quinn has to come out of retirement for one last job. Cue chaos, fungi, and quite a lot of Neeson running about with that familiar scowl.
Cold Storage only managed about $4 million at the global box office, despite its limited theatrical release, but it's since shot up the streaming charts after finding a fresh audience.
If you’re expecting a gritty thriller, this isn’t it. Cold Storage is both a tongue-in-cheek alien invasion movie and an unashamed B-movie, with a good amount of gallows humour and absurdity. Think: big ideas, even bigger creatures, and a plot that doesn’t take itself remotely seriously.
Cast and Crew: A Step Above the Usual
The supporting cast is frankly where the fun really kicks in. Joe Keery (yep, Steve from Stranger Things) and Georgina Campbell (Barbarian) both lean into the comedy, delivering performances that are a genuine cut above your average straight-to-streaming fare. Then you’ve got the likes of Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread, The Crown) and the legendary Vanessa Redgrave – two heavyweights you don’t normally see going to war with sentient alien sludge.
Jonny Campbell – who’s directed everything from Westworld to Dracula – is behind the camera. But the real pedigree comes from writer David Koepp, who penned Jurassic Park, War of the Worlds, and the original Spider-Man movie. This one actually springs from Koepp’s own novel, which explains some of the wild creative choices on display.
- Liam Neeson as Robert Quinn
- Joe Keery
- Georgina Campbell
- Lesley Manville
- Vanessa Redgrave
- Director: Jonny Campbell
- Writer (and source novel): David Koepp
Forget box office numbers; the real story’s on streaming. Despite making what most would call ‘high-quality straight-to-streaming’ money in cinemas ($4 million, to be generous), Cold Storage found much more love online. It’s currently got an 81% critics’ score and a 75% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, making it one of the most warmly received Neeson projects in the last decade or so.
Recently, the film has been on and off Prime Video’s global top ten list, keeping pace with heavy hitters like Project Hail Mary and Masters of the Universe, which isn’t bad going for an oddball B-movie about dangerous space fungi. The big cast probably helped, but honestly, it’s just daft fun with a bigger budget than most underground gems get these days.