Micheál Richardson hasn’t "fully comprehended" his mother Natasha Richardson’s 2009 death.
The 25-year-old actor – who is the son of Natasha and Liam Neeson – was just 13 when his mother passed away at the age of 45 from a brain haemorrhage following a skiing accident.
And just over a decade after her death, Micheál has said he still hasn’t "dealt with" the "pain" of her passing, as he believes his brain has protected him from the "overwhelming" emotions.
He said: "I think the pain was a little too overwhelming. I think the mind is very powerful, and subconsciously, or unconsciously, it can protect you. That’s what it did when she passed. I just pushed it aside and didn’t want to deal with it.
"I don’t, even still, think that I’ve fully comprehended it, and that seems to be a similar journey to a lot of people I’ve spoken to. 50 year olds who lost their parents when they were 12, 13 … One day they’re out gardening, and something comes over them and they just break down."
The ‘Made In Italy’ star also praised his mother’s acting career, highlighting the 1998 remake of ‘The Parent Trap’ as his favourite movie in her filmography because it accurately portrays the kind of mother she was.
He told Vanity Fair magazine: "Just based off of who she is and how I remember her, it has to be ‘The Parent Trap’.
"That’s more or less what she was like. She was this sweet, amazing mother figure – my best friend. She had these amazing, big welcomes when we’d come home or she would come home.
"I’m so lucky because I have her captured on film."
Micheál changed his surname to Richardson two years ago to honour his late mother, and it was insisted at the time that the change wasn’t to "avoid" his father Liam Neeson’s famous name.
Natasha’s mother, Vanessa Redgrave, said in 2018: "He’s taken, officially, the name of his mother. He’s Micheál Richardson, not Micheál Neeson.
"That wasn’t because he wanted to avoid his father’s fame, which is enormous. He wanted to hold his mother close to him – because she was a remarkable actress. Absolutely remarkable.
"Our quaint customs dictate we have to have a male name. I don’t object. Why not? It’s as good as any."