How Natasha Richardson and Liam Neeson's Son Coped With His Mother's Death

— -- The teenage son of Liam Neeson and Natasha Richardson revealed for the first time how he descended into a "dark" world of alcohol and drug abuse following the tragic death of his mother in 2009.

Micheál Neeson, 19, told UK's The Sunday Times that he had a "delayed reaction" to his mother's death.

"In my mind, subconsciously, I either pushed it out or stored it deep inside," said Neeson, who was only 13 at the time of his mother's fatal fall during a beginner's ski lesson. "And so, within the next week I was like 'Okay, on with my life.'"

Instead of grieving, the teen hit the party scene, smoking marijuana and drinking heavily, he said.

"Last spring, things just started going downhill. The people I was with, we were partying a lot," he told the newspaper. "It was dark. I hit rock bottom."

With the help of friends and his family, including his "awesome grandma," Vanessa Redgrave -- and a stint in wilderness therapy, where he survived for months on dehydrated food in the Utah desert -- the 19-year-old got sober.

Looking back, he realizes that he was struggling to deal with his loss.

"Everybody said, 'This kid has lost his mum, that's where the problem comes from.' And I was like, 'No, it isn't, I just like to party,'" he told the Times. "But looking back I realize it was a delayed reaction."

A former intern at Savile Row and Celine, Neeson now works as a fashion gallery curator in London, but he doesn't dismiss the idea of following in his famous parents' footsteps.

"Acting is a huge interest," he said, even if his dad is not so keen on the idea. "My dad says, 'Please, can you just be a farmer or a bartender or something?'"

But the younger Neeson believes his mom would have approved.

"She never vocalized it, but I know that my mum liked the idea of me becoming an actor. She would have thought that was cool," he said.