Taken star Liam Neeson and Freelance star John Cena are “totally different.”

That may not sound surprising, but Pierre Morel would know. The French filmmaker has worked with both now by directing Taken and Freelance.

A point brought up to Morel during his chat with ClutchPoints was that Neeson was in his fifties at the time Taken was filmed. That was also his first major high-profile action gig, at least in a while. Cena, on the other hand, is a former WWE star and has been starring in action films consistently for the past decade or so.

It's something that Morel acknowledges, but it's still “totally different.”

“Yes, John obviously has been doing that (action) all [of] his career. I mean, after years of wrestling, he's a physical guy and he can pull off a lot,” Morel said. “But again, I think it's not just about the action. It's just about the characters. And that's why I make movies, too.”

He explained that movies with substance over style interest him. The same goes for Cena and Neeson. “If you offer me a movie [that] is like all-in [on] action, but there's no story, I'm not interested,” Morel confessed. “So the experience was interesting because beyond their physical capacity, they are amazing actors, entertainers, and there's a similar experience with both of them because it's about their characters, about their lines, about what they can deliver outside of the action, which was interesting.”

Freelance is Pierre Morel's seventh feature film. It follows a retired Special Forces operator (played by John Cena) who, after a military coup goes down, has to ensure the safety of a journalist (played by Alison Brie) and the president of Paldonia (played by Juan Pablo Raba).

Freelance will be released on October 27.