Liam Neeson’s end-credits musical number in The Naked Gun reboot was a last-minute idea

Liam Neeson's The Naked Gun brought back the silliness, sight gags, and slapstick humor of the original franchise, and it all stayed there till the end-credit scenes.

Akiva Schaffer, who co-wrote and directed the movie, ensured that Leslie Nielsen's legacy lives on till the very end. That's why he introduced many gags that might remind you of the originals. He maintained that tradition till the very end, when we hear Neeson suddenly breaking into a romantic ballad as Frank Drebin Jr. proclaims his love for Beth (Pamela Anderson).

It's not your usual musical number. It begins with Drebin Jr. pouring his heart out for "a very special lady," but it turns racy in no time. That won't come as a surprise to those who are well aware of the franchise's humor. Yet, Neeson catches viewers off guard and sings this song with a finesse that might make you think it was always the plan.

As it turns out, the end-credits musical number was a last-minute idea. Akiva Schaffer spoke about it during his conversation with Entertainment Weekly. He said,

"I always knew I needed to do something in the credits, and finally we were picture-locked and we were in the edit room and I just [recorded the song] into my laptop, put it in the movie, and two hours later we screened it and it did really well. Then I replaced [my vocals] with Liam… I'm very pleased that we got that in at the buzzer, that we snuck in there."

The end-credit scenes in The Naked Gun served as homage to the original movies

The Naked Gun movies had never been about finding a larger significance behind their gags. They have always been goofy spoofs that poked fun at the crime procedural dramas, among other things, without taking themselves too seriously.

Akiva Schaffer's new film understands that. That's why its last musical number doesn't become a self-serious sequence. The lyrics begin on a passionate note as Frank Drebin Jr. speaks about the love of his life, but they quickly veer into a meta moment where he starts mapping the space in the recording studio. Soon, it gets sillier, racier, and funnier to the point where he sings,

"Top shelf curves, and brains to boot—And boots that would top my brain’s top ten list—Aboot boots, and the curvy brains that bought them"

It sounds like a man who's confused about how to express his feelings toward the one he loves. Also, there's an elaborate tongue-twister hiding in plain sight! As an actor, Neeson understood it all. So, even after starting like Frank Sinatra, he quickly brought the song back to its sillier roots. In a conversation with EW, he recalled his performance, saying:

"I thought, yeah, sure. It's not supposed to be Frank Sinatra or Tony Bennett, so we had a bit of fun with it."

He further spoke about his experience of singing on screen before Akiva Schaffer's The Naked Gun.

"Much to my embarrassment, I sang to Julie Andrews. I played Julie Andrews' lover, and I'm a third-rate British club singer. I sang Tom Jones' classic 'Green Green Grass of Home' in front of Julie Andrews. Terrified, f‑‑‑ing, terrified."

The Naked Gun is in cinemas now.