Now that Hangover 2 director Todd Phillips has taken the decision not to hire Mel Gibson for a cameo after his cast and crew came out against the plan, that doesn’t mean that the role – which the Hollywood Reporter’s sources say is “pivotal” to the movie – is going away with him. No, by the time you read this, chances are Liam Neeson will already have gotten himself over to Warner Bros. studio back lot to start shooting.

Much like the first movie, the sequel will find leads Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis (this time likely joined for more screen time by Justin Bartha) trying to figure out what happened during another drunken night of excess. The tattoo artist they encounter in Thailand is one of the people who can help them sort out the events of the night, though the script currently describes him as “intense” and the sort of person you’d be afraid to approach. That doesn’t necessarily sound like a close fit for Neeson, but you know he can bring the pain when called upon.

And Neeson taking over the role isn’t a huge shock, with his A-Team co-star Cooper reaching out to see if he’d do the job.

But thought Mel Gibson’s no longer appearing, the controversy continues to swirl, with accusations of hypocrisy about ditching the actor/director yet using a man with an even more dodgy past (Mike Tyson) for the first film…