The tragic death of Liam Neeson’s wife, Natasha Richardson, helped his friend Ciaran Hinds add depth to his role in “The Eclipse.”



Hinds plays a grieving widower in the Conor McPherson psychological thriller.

He commented on how close he felt to this role in a recent interview, and how “strong” his friend, Neeson, has been since Natasha Richardson’s death.



“I've played a lot of great roles but I think the one closest to me is my recent role in ‘The Eclipse,’” he said.



"The journey that the character goes on is one I think I understand about. I was able to draw on personal feelings of grief from family and friends I've lost along the way, friends like Natasha."



Hinds was one of the pallbearers at Natasha Richardson’s funeral. She died from a head injury caused by a skiing accident in March, 2009.

Though Hinds lives in London with his wife and daughter, he has remained in close contact with Neeson over the year.



“I'm constantly in contact with Liam. He's doing well, as well as can be expected,” he said.

“It was very shocking, but Liam is strong and the boys are in good shape.”



“The Eclipse” has already win Best Film at the Irish Film and Television Awards.



Over the last number of years Hinds has starred in blockbusters such as “There Will Be Blood” and “In Bruges”.

Later this year he will be back on the big screen playing Aberforth Dumbledore in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.”