Hans Gruber | Die Hard Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia "...I'm telling you, you're just going to have to kill me." "OK." ―Hans' response to Takagi as he casually blows his brains across the board room [src] Still believing him to be a terrorist, Takagi continued to make assumptions about the purpose of the takeover to which Gruber impatiently told him to sit down. He then continued to question Takagi over the code. After repeatedly denying that he knew the code, Takagi bravely asserted that they were just going to have to kill him. Unfortunately, Hans agreed, and killed Takagi by a single shot to the head from his weapon of choice, a Heckler & Koch P7M13 semi-automatic pistol. After that Gruber ordered Theo, his technical expert, to break through the locks on the vault. Theo reminded Hans that the final lock is powered by circuits that cannot be cut locally. Gruber promised to handle the last lock. Hans stares down the barrel of John's MP5. Hans was unaware, however, that observing them through the glass door from the outside was John McClane, who had slipped through the hands of the terrorists.

McClane had stopped over at the tower to pick up his wife, Holly. After killing Karl's brother, Tony, Karl screams in anger and toss the office desk down, causing Hans to pushes him into the wall and tells him not to alter their plan. McClane used Tony's walkie-talkie to radio for help. This resulted in a cop car being sent over. The officer, Al Powell, did a quick check over, and left. McClane saw this and after having dispatched two more of the terrorists threw the body onto Powell's car. These were the first omens of the trouble to come. Master Plan "Mrs. McClane. How nice to make your acquaintance." ―Hans discovers Holly's relation to John McClane. [src] While acquiring a two-way radio, C4 explosives, and detonators from the body of one terrorist, McClane explained the situation via the two-way radio as the police, led by Deputy Police Chief Dwayne T. Robinson , arrived. The police sent in a SWAT team and an armored vehicle. McClane and Powell aware unable to prevent the SWAT team from being ambushed, but McClane managed to kill the terrorists attacking the SWAT team.

One of Holly's coworkers, Harry Ellis , tried to negotiate with Hans and McClane for the return of the detonators. McClane helplessly tells Ellis that Hans would kill him to which Gruber proves when Ellis fails. The FBI arrived, and took control from the police. They ordered the power to the building shut down, which deactivates the vault's final lock as Gruber had intended. Theo ransacks the now-open vault, loading the bearer bonds into an ambulance to be used as their getaway vehicle. Hans intimidates Holly. McClane continued to sneak through the building to kill the terrorists. When he found Gruber working at the explosives planted on the roof, Gruber passed himself off as an escaped hostage. McClane appeared to let down his guard, and gave Gruber a gun; when Gruber attempted to fire the weapon, however, it is discovered that there were no bullets in the gun. As this happened, Gruber's men appeared from an elevator and fired at McClane, who was forced to flee, leaving behind the detonators.

The roof was rigged to explode with the detonators, and Gruber lured the FBI into the trap by asking for helicopter transport for him and his men to Los Angeles International Airport in exchange for the hostages; Gruber planned to use the roof explosion to make the authorities believe him to be dead and allow him to escape with the bonds. As the helicopters travelled to the scene, Gruber observed a television news story from investigative reporter Richard Thornburg that Lucy mentions that Holly Gennero is McClane's wife. With the helicopter nearing with Special Agent Johnson and Agent Johnson on board, Gruber ordered the hostages to the roof, taking personal control over Holly. Death "Oh yes, what was it you said to me before? Yippee-ki-ay...motherfucker." ―Hans imitating John McClane before he tries to kill him [src] McClane arrived at the roof, dealt with the terrorists escorting the hostages, and used his Heckler and Koch MP5 to scare the hostages back downstairs before Hans detonated the C4 and the roof exploded saving McClane from Special Agent Johnson who mistaken him as one of Han's men and about to shoot him, which unfortunately engulfed the FBI helicopters killing Agent Johnson and everyone on the helicopter.

Hans's plan continued to fall apart when Argyle stopped Theo from escaping in the getaway ambulance by knocking him unconscious when he rammed the truck with his limousine. After getting back into the skyscraper by shooting through the window, he realized that the remaining two terrorists, Eddie and Hans were holding Holly. He quickly taped his Beretta 92F pistol to his upper back with Christmas gift wrap tape and walked into the vault armed with his empty MP5. Hans Gruber falls from the 30th floor of the Nakatomi building. Hans put his pistol to Holly's head and told John to surrender his machine gun, having finally gotten the drop on McClane. John did as he was told, and put his hands behind his back, but used the feint to grab his pistol and shoot Eddie in the forehead and Gruber in the shoulder. The bullet shot through a window, cracking it. Still holding Holly, Hans staggers backwards, wounded badly from the gunshot, and crashes through the broken window. Hans grabs onto Holly's watch and drags her to the floor, hanging on desperately to avoid falling off the building.

McClane rushes to help Holly, who is inches away from falling to her death, desperately attempting to unclasp the watch while an infuriated Hans slowly levels his P7 at McClane with the intention of ending his life. Luckily, before Hans can shoot John and take Holly with him, John unclasps the butter hook, and a shocked Hans plummets to his death on the pavement of the plaza , 30 stories down. His reign of terror on McClane, Holly and the hostages was over and Joe Takagi and Harry Ellis are avenged. Appearance Edit Hans in Holly's office. Hans, on the night of the Nakatomi Christmas party, appeared a very well groomed man. He wore a black suit, a white shirt, a red tie, and black shoes. Due to his knowledge of Takagi's expensive suit, it is likely his own suit was quite expensive. He had brown, though slightly graying hair that was combed to the right. In the file photo used in the news broadcast, detailing the Nakatomi takeover, Hans did, however, have extremely messy hair and baggy, dirty clothes. Personality ― Alan Rickman on Hans Gruber [src] Hans Gruber in Die Hard.

Hans preferred to switch between a casual persona and an intimidating one in order to surprise people with his next move, as he had many different tricks up his sleeve. This is the main dilemma of the film, as Hans and John are both trying to stay one step ahead of each other in a battle of wits. Hans had a casual attitude to killing as shown when he murdered Takagi and Ellis and intended to murder the staff of Nakatomi which included a pregnant woman whom he was aware of. As shown when dealing with Holly, he also had a curt attitude to people whom he did not know. Hans also has a good, but clearly dark sense of humor, and isn't afraid to make light of very dark and serious situations. This is furthered by his apparent jokey nature with Karl and Theo, two people he presumably knew well and liked. Even McClane often shot witty remarks back and forth either face to face or over the radio with Hans. The last thing Hans ever says, in fact, is a repetition of McClane's trademark phrase that he had jokingly coined over the radio earlier in the film. An intelligent man, Hans liked to flaunt his knowledge and boast of his high education, as shown during his conversation with Takagi.

Gruber was also knowledgeable about business and finance, and he was also able to determine what kind of high priced suit one was wearing just by looking at it (or perhaps he just had a penchant for John Philips suits in particular). Hans also seems to enjoy reading magazines, making references to things that he has read in Forbes and Time. While speaking to the Police and FBI, Hans diverts their attention by pretending to have ideological aims, as had been presumed (as opposed to the simply self-interested theft which the operation truly is), and demands the release of supposedly imprisoned members of various groups in Canada, Sri Lanka and Northern Ireland, referring to these as "comrades in arms". He has, of course, no concern whatsoever for these people, and when questioned by Karl (who is puzzled, as the ploy seems not to have been a pre-arranged part of the plan) Hans states that he read about them in Time magazine, and doesn't care whether the FBI act on the demands or not. Due to his blatant disregard for human life, along with the unbelievable things he'd done for the sake of a robbery, John had no problem doing away with Hans.

McClane likely feels that Gruber is one of the most disgusting beings he's ever met. Even in the third film, Hans' brother, Simon, concurs with McClane, saying in agreement that his brother was, indeed, an 'asshole'. Impact Edit Alan Rickman's performance as Hans Gruber made him an iconic actor for years to come. Due in no small part to Rickman's performance, the character of Hans Gruber has had an enduring popularity and is constantly voted as one of the top villains of all time. Due to this, Hans is often seen as John McClane's one true nemesis and the quintessential Die Hard villain, only seconded by his brother, Simon, in Die Hard with a Vengeance. Due to his highly acclaimed and recognizable performance, Alan Rickman was often typecast as villains following this film, such as playing the Sheriff of Nottingham in the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. In recent years, Rickman has generally stayed away from playing straight villain roles, instead preferring more complex characters.

For example, Severus Snape in the Harry Potter franchise, who at first glance seems villanous, but is later revealed that while unlikable in many ways, is an antihero, or complex heroic figure. This role has also impacted Rickman's career and popularity. Hans was still mentioned relatively often or at least referenced to in some way, in both Die Hard 2 and Die Hard with a Vengeance. He's even arguably referenced to whenever McClane says his 'yippie ki yay' line, as those words were the last words Hans had the chance to say before his death. Hans Gruber is often voted as one of Alan Rickman's most popular roles. Other popular roles played by Rickman being the Sherriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood-Prince of Thieves, Severus Snape in Harry Potter, and Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd. Quotes Die Hard (1988) - IMDb IMDb There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends.

Error John McClane, officer of the NYPD, tries to save his wife Holly Gennaro and several others that were taken hostage by German terrorist Hans Gruber during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles. Director: From $2.99 (SD) on Amazon Video ON DISC a list of 31 titles created 01 Sep 2011 a list of 47 titles created 28 May 2015 a list of 36 titles created 05 Oct 2015 a list of 39 titles created 28 Nov 2015 a list of 23 titles created 2 months ago Search for " Die Hard " on Amazon.com Connect with IMDb Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 2 nominations. See more awards » Videos John McClane attempts to avert disaster as rogue military operatives seize control of Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C.

Director: Renny Harlin John McClane and a Harlem store owner are targeted by German terrorist Simon Gruber in New York City, where he plans to rob the Federal Reserve Building. Director: John McTiernan John McClane and a young hacker join forces to take down master cyber-terrorist Thomas Gabriel in Washington D.C. Director: Len Wiseman A cyborg, identical to the one who failed to kill Sarah Connor, must now protect her teenage son, John Connor, from a more advanced cyborg. Director: James Cameron 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8/10 X A seemingly indestructible humanoid cyborg is sent from 2029 to 1984 to assassinate a waitress, whose unborn son will lead humanity in a war against the machines, while a soldier from that war is sent to protect her at all costs. Director: James Cameron Marty McFly, a 17-year-old high school student, is accidentally sent 30 years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his close friend, the maverick scientist Doc Brown.

Director: Robert Zemeckis During a preview tour, a theme park suffers a major power breakdown that allows its cloned dinosaur exhibits to run amok. Director: Steven Spielberg Archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis. Director: Steven Spielberg When Dr. Henry Jones Sr. suddenly goes missing while pursuing the Holy Grail, eminent archaeologist Indiana Jones must follow in his father's footsteps and stop the Nazis. Director: Steven Spielberg Rocky Balboa, a small-time boxer, gets a supremely rare chance to fight heavy-weight champion Apollo Creed in a bout in which he strives to go the distance for his self-respect. Director: John G. Avildsen Directors: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez, and 1 more credit » Stars: Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen, Bruce Willis A boy who communicates with spirits that don't know they're dead seeks the help of a disheartened child psychologist. Director: M. Night Shyamalan Edit Storyline NYPD cop John McClane goes on a Christmas vacation to visit his wife Holly in Los Angeles where she works for the Nakatomi Corporation.

While they are at the Nakatomi headquarters for a Christmas party, a group of bank robbers led by Hans Gruber take control of the building and hold everyone hostage, with the exception of John, while they plan to perform a lucrative heist. Unable to escape and with no immediate police response, John is forced to take matters into his own hands. Written by Sam 40 Storeys. Twelve Terrorists. One Cop. See more » Genres: 20 July 1988 (USA) See more » Also Known As: Duro de matar See more » Filming Locations: 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)| Dolby Stereo (35 mm prints) (4 channels) Color: Did You Know? Trivia Clarence Gilyard, Jr. (Theo) and Grand L. Bush (FBI Agent Little Johnson) both share the same birthdate, December 24, 1955. See more » Goofs When Sgt. Powell asks the security guard (terrorist posing as security guard) if he can take a look around the building. At the counter Powell is leaning on, the reflection of a giant stage lamp can be seen.

See more » Quotes Businessman : You don't like flying, do you? John McClane : What gives you that idea? Businessman : You wanna know the secret to surviving air travel? After you get where you're going, take off your shoes and your socks then walk around on the rug bare foot and make fists with your toes. John McClane : Fists with your toes? Businessman : I know, I know, it sounds crazy. Trust me, I've been doing it for nine years. Yes sir, better than a shower and a hot cup of coffee. [the businessman sees John's gun] John McClane : It's okay, I'm a cop. Trust me, I've been ... (The Penumbra) – See all my reviews In the Sixties, author Roderick Thorp wrote a novel, The Detective, which was turned into a movie, starring Frank Sinatra in the title role of Joe Leland. A sequel was written, in which Joe becomes trapped in the Claxxon Oil Corporation skyscraper after it is taken over by German terrorists and he has to rescue his daughter and grandchildren.

Two decades later, the skyscraper becomes Nakatomi, the daughter becomes the wife, Leland becomes John McClane and the title becomes Die Hard. To say that Die Hard sets new standards for action movies is like calling Bill Gates well off. The movie was so innovative and groundbreaking that dozens of rip-offs followed - Passenger 57, Under Siege, Cliffhanger, Sudden Death, et al. Hostage/terrorist movies were all the rage in the early Nineties. Very few came close, because Die Hard had so many strong points, not least of which was Alan Rickman's marvellous performance, as Hans Gruber - also the name of the villain in Our Man Flint - the classically educated, smartly dressed terrorist leader. This is not some hammy guy in a chain-mail shirt with spikes on his gloves (Commando). Gruber would have been well at home on Wall Street. His plan is to break into the vault on the 30th floor of the Nakatomi Plaza and take away $640million in negotiable bearer bonds. When he and his 12 European henchmen round up the office workers, who are enjoying a Christmas Eve party, one man slips away unnoticed.

He is John McClane, a New York cop who has come to LA to settle down with his estranged wife, Holly (Bonnie Bedelia). The odds are against him. But that's just the way he likes it. The terrorists even have names. And we remember them. Most action movies these days have unidentified heavies, played by stunt men, who are lined up and knocked over. In his battle to save his Holly, McClane is scorched, torched, beaten and blown up. He jumps off the roof and falls through air ducts. He uncovers deception and double-cross and picks broken glass out of his bare feet. No help comes from the naive and incompetent police, who are unable to get inside, and even less from the FBI. McClane is not a supercop. He is an ordinary guy, who doesn't want a fight. When he is shot, he bleeds. He hurts. All he has are his pants, his vest, his gun - which runs out of ammo. This is the first realistic connection the audience has. When you don't want to be in McClane's position, it makes for much excitement.

John McTiernan, who's only previous mainstream movie was Predator, uses awesome photography and technical skills to give the film a truly polished and sophisticated look - it was nominated for four technical Academy Awards. He also allows for enough time for decent character development, most of which comes between McClane and a cop (Reginald Veljohnson) he makes friends with on a CB radio. Die Hard manages to be heart-pounding and teeth-gritting every single time. And if you are one of those many people who have only ever been able to watch it on TV then now is definitely the time to rediscover a cool, classic and creative action picture. 72 of 123 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you?

Yes The Unforgettable Villainy of Alan Rickman in “Die Hard” - The New Yorker The Unforgettable Villainy of Alan Rickman in “Die Hard” By January 14, 2016 For many moviegoers, Alan Rickman will always be the toothy, perfectly manicured, sphinxlike villain Hans Gruber, from the 1988 action movie “Die Hard.”CreditPHOTOGRAPH BY 20TH CENTURY FOX FILM CORP. / EVERETT Alan Rickman, who died on Thursday, at the age of sixty-nine, was a classically trained actor who did time in the Royal Shakespeare Company and made his name in modern theatrical productions, notably “Les Liaisons Dangereuses,” which he starred in first in London, in 1985, and then on Broadway, in 1987. Despite being passed over for John Malkovich when that play was turned into the movie “Dangerous Liaisons,” Rickman would go on to play dozens of memorable characters onscreen, including Professor Severus Snape in all eight Harry Potter movies, as well as to write and perform for the stage.

But, for philistines like me (and, it seems, for many others), Rickman was—and now always will be—Hans Gruber, the toothy, perfectly manicured, sphinxlike villain from the 1988 action movie “Die Hard.” The plot of “Die Hard” barely matters, but quickly: Bruce Willis plays a New York cop visiting his estranged wife at her office in the fictional Nakatomi Plaza, in Los Angeles. Their reunion, during a Christmas party, is spoiled by the arrival of Gruber and his goons, who initially appear to be terrorists, but whose real motive is more simple: money, six hundred and forty million dollars of it. Gruber takes everyone hostage, and only Willis remains at large in the building, left to foil the bad guy’s plans. Enough of that, though. The greatness of “Die Hard,” which, in the gun-smoke haze of lousy sequels and terrible knockoffs, has been partly lost, lies in its pacing. We may remember the scenes of frenzied action, and all the broken glass, but, for the most part, the movie is made up of plodding moments of dread-inducing monotony and quiet.

Surely no other action movie featured so many characters walking around in anonymous corridors of an office building, humming to themselves. At the center of this is Rickman’s Gruber, who is not only a perfect straight man to Willis’s catch-phrasing cowboy but also the movie’s guiding tonal spirit. He’s oddly contained, seemingly bored by the very mayhem he’s set in motion. He delivers his first lines to the terrified hostages by reading from a little date book, as if he needs to remind himself which master heist he is scheduled to perform that day. Gruber has no typical action-baddie backstory—he’s not out to avenge his dead brother, or father, or wife, and the best joke of the movie occurs when Gruber gets on the phone with a hostage negotiator and demands the release of various incarcerated political separatists from around the world, members of groups that, he tells his comrade, he simply read about in Time. “Do you think they’ll even try to do it?” his henchman asks him. Gruber’s response is a kind of personal mission statement: “Who cares?” Indeed, he is simply a blank-canvas thief, one for whom even money seems a little beside the point.

He likes nice suits, reads magazines, misquotes Plutarch. No one ever looked so brilliantly uninterested while firing a machine gun or executing a civilian. In Rickman’s deadpan performance, Gruber seems to possess a strange fatalism, as if he expects to lose, and to die, all along. Who cares? But, despite this nihilistic anonymity, it is Gruber who remains the movie’s unforgettable character. “Die Hard” made Bruce Willis a movie star, but it earned Rickman a different kind of designation, as the prototypical, and at the same time impossible-to-replicate, action-movie villain. The secret may be that Rickman himself didn’t think of Gruber that way. “I’m not playing the villain,” he once said . “I’m just playing somebody who wants certain things in life, has made certain choices, and goes after them.” What Rickman was describing wasn’t a character’s backstory—Little Hans in Berlin, unloved and overlooked—but his motivation, distilled down to a human being’s most basic urges: see, want, get.

Yet from that came a surfeit of specificity: his precise grooming, his distant manner, his slightly nervous yet menacing grin, his flat affect, with a voice that the actor once described as “coming out the back end of a drainpipe.” No other action villain had a better beard, a more fun name to say out loud, or a better death scene (involving a stunt that Rickman performed himself, and that, over the years, took on the air of myth, with the distance of his fall growing from twenty to thirty to, eventually, forty feet). Amazingly, Gruber was Rickman’s first movie role. He later joked that the producers cast a relative unknown like him because they’d already spent all their money on Willis. But it’s impossible to imagine anyone else playing Hans Gruber, and Rickman had the good sense never to play a version of the same role again.

Gruber’s cultural immortality was likely helped by the fact that, unlike Willis’s, most of his memorable, and quotable, lines survived the censors of basic cable: “I’m going to count to three; there will not be a four”; “He won’t be joining us for the rest of his life.” My favorite bit is a monologue he delivers over a walkie-talkie to Willis, in an attempt to figure out the identity and nature of his adversary: “You know my name, but who are you? Just another American who saw too many movies as a child? Another orphan of a bankrupt culture who thinks he’s John Wayne? Rambo?

Marshal Dillon?” Gruber might have been some Eurotrash snob, but Rickman clearly did not share his character’s distaste for the American audience watching “Die Hard.” He was a serious actor, in the best way, which meant that he was serious about this character, bringing to him the same sincerity and empathy —and, with it, a generosity to the audience—that he would to other indelible performances in what might have been silly roles: in the sci-fi farce “Galaxy Quest,” or the political satire “Bob Roberts,” or the ensemble romantic comedy “Love, Actually,” or as Harry Potter’s professor of wizardry. In “Die Hard,” even among all the gunfire, dialogue about access codes and negotiable bearer bonds, and other eighties-action nonsense, there is a kind of perfect integrity to Hans Gruber. I doubt it’s just sentimentality that has so many people on Twitter today declaring that they wish he’d got away with the money. Ian Crouch is a contributing writer and producer for newyorker.com. He lives in Maine. Die Hard (1988) Die Hard (1988) The 'Die Hard' Films - Part 1 Die Hard (1988) d.

John McTiernan, 131 minutes Film Plot Summary New York detective/cop Lt. Bruce McClane (Bruce Willis) took a flight to Los Angeles, arriving on Christmas Eve, 1988, with plans to join his estranged wife (of six months) Holly Gennero/McClane (Bonnie Bedelia) at a holiday party in her place of business, the 40 story high-rise Nakatomi Plaza Towers in Century City. A fast-talking, inquisitive limo driver named Argyle (De'voreaux White), paid for by the Nakatomi Corporation, drove him to the building, and promised to wait for him in the underground parking garage, pending the outcome of his renewed reconciliation with Holly. He entered the Christmas Eve party already in progress on the 30th floor, where he met the CEO Joe Takagi (James Shigeta), and was led to Holly's private office - her position was Director of Corporate Affairs. When McClane first saw Holly, Takagi commended her as a successful career woman: "She was made for the business.

Tough as nails." While washing up in the bathroom, Holly invited him to use the spare bedroom at her house, where she lived with their two daughters, although they bickered about long-standing issues between them. Downstairs, two assailants, one of whom was nasty, long blonde-haired henchman Karl Vreski (Alexander Godunov), entered the lobby and shot the front-desk officer and security guard, while in the parking area, a truck opened up with ten other heavily-armed, hi-tech terrorists, led by the classic bad-guy villain Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman), a well-read ex-member of the radical West German Volksfrei movement. As they infiltrated into the building, one of the men, a black technical-computer expert named Theo (Clarence Gilyard, Jr.), locked up all the elevator access and the outer entrances of the building, and another cut off all phone communications. The gunmen interrupted the party with gunfire, and took all the guests hostage, including McClane's wife. McClane, in a white T-shirt and barefooted, watched from the wash-room and then fled to various upper floors, keeping track of which ones were operational or under-construction.

Gruber addressed the frightened party-goers, citing the corporation's greed and power worldwide, and then took CEO Takagi away. In Takagi's executive offices (where McClane overheard their conversations), he was threatened to reveal the computer's passcodes, to access the $640 million dollars in negotiable bearer bonds locked in the Japanese corporation's vault. When Takagi refused, Gruber shot him point-blank in the head. The terrorists were forced to try to break into the vault "the hard way." Theo told Gruber that it would take a half-hour to break the code, and two and a half hours to disable six other mechanical locks on the vault, leaving the seventh and final lock ("the electromagnetic seal") with circuits that could not be cut locally. Gruber replied confidently: "Trust me." To distract the terrorists and alert outside authorities, McClane activated a fire alarm on the 32nd floor, but the alarm was cancelled and the system deactivated. During a struggle with one of the German terrorists (Karl's brother) sent to investigate, McClane broke his neck and then took his machine-gun, ammunition and other items from his satchel.

He sent the dead body down to the 30th floor on the elevator (with "Now I Have a Machine Gun - Ho-Ho-Ho" spelled out on his sweatshirt) to alert the terrorists of his presence (and his ability to thwart their efforts), as he stealthily entered the elevator shaft. On the building's roof, he used a two-way CB radio (on a reserved channel) to send out a "May-Day" alert about the terrorist take-over, and although he was not taken seriously, a black-and-white "drive-by" was ordered. While buying snacks at an AM-PM Mini-Mart (gas was 74.9 cents/gallon!), LAPD Sgt. Al Powell (Reginald VelJohnson) was notified of a Code 2 at the nearby Nakatomi Building in Century City, and proceeded to the area. When the terrorists overheard his alert, McClane escaped their gunfire and pursuit by moving through a maze of airducts and ventilation/elevator shafts from the rooftop, in a tense cat-and-mouse sequence. McClane killed two more terrorists, Heinrich (Gary Roberts) and Marco (Lorenzo Caccialanza), and took detonators from Heinrich's bag.

To alert Officer Powell to problems inside (Powell had determined he was on a "wild goose chase"), McClane heaved the dead body of Marco out of the skyscraper onto his patrol car as he pulled away. Powell radioed in: "Police under automatic rifle fire at Nakatomi. I need back-up assistance now!" Sirens sounded from multiple police cars as the building was surrounded by LAPD, although Gruber called it only "inconvenient timing." When McClane radioed Gruber, he was called the "mysterious party crasher" and "Mr. Mystery Guest" - and misidentified as a security guard. For clarity's sake, McClane identified himself: "Just a fly in the ointment, Hans, the monkey in the wrench, the pain in the ass..." Gruber wasn't satisfied: "You know my name, but who are you? Just another American who saw too many movies as a child? Another orphan of a bankrupt culture who thinks he's John Wayne? Rambo? Marshal Dillon?" McClane responded: "I was always kinda partial to Roy Rogers actually.

I really liked those sequined shirts." When Gruber replied: "Do you really think you have a chance against us, Mr. Cowboy?", McClane delivered his most familiar line: "Yippee-kai-yay, motherf--ker." On the radio with Powell throughout the remainder of the siege, McClane (calling himself "Roy") described the tense situation on the 30th floor with hostages, calling the terrorists "bad-ass perpetrators." SWAT teams, the FBI in helicopters, and a live-mobile news crew arrived at the scene to report on the incident of international terrorism. (Meanwhile, in the basement garage, Argyle finally learned of the situation, but found he was locked in). Cantankerous, stubborn and clueless Deputy Police Chief Dwayne T. Robinson (Paul Gleason) ordered an all-out assault of the building by his SWAT team, unaware of the ambush being prepared to greet them, as McClane worriedly called them "macho assholes." The terrorists set up a massive rocket launcher to repel the attack of an LAPD armored R.V. (Theo exclaimed as the vehicle exploded: "Oh my God, the quarterback is toast!").

To prevent further devastation, McClane opened the elevator doors and sent C4 plastic explosives down the shaft ("Geronimo, motherf--ker") - wiping out a few more terrorists on the lower floors who were firing on the SWAT team. Calling himself Gruber's "white knight," Holly's egotistical co-worker Harry Ellis (Hart Bochner) negotiated with the lead terrorist, telling him that he could reveal McClane: "I can give him to you" - Gruber learned McClane's name and occupation (NYPD officer). Ellis, by radio, attempted to convince McClane to "stop messing up the works," and asked him to reveal the location of the detonators so that no one else would get hurt. When Gruber realized that Ellis was lying and didn't really know McClane, Ellis was summarily shot dead. Gruber then spoke to police chief Robinson, falsely demanding the release of "revolutionary brothers and sisters" around the world in prison. If they complied within two hours, he promised that the hostages would be taken to the building's roof to accompany them in helicopters to the Los Angeles International Airport. When two FBI agents arrived (both named Johnson (Robert Davi and Grand L.

Bush)), they took over responsibility from Robinson for the siege of the building. McClane confronted Gruber face-to-face, not realizing who he was when the terrorist gave him a real pseudonym, Bill Clay, and explained how he was one of the party-goers attempting to send a signal from the roof. After McClane had given him a gun to help, Gruber demanded that McClane drop the detonators in his satchel. The gun was not loaded, however, and McClane was enabled to escape (without his satchel) when Gruber's henchmen arrived and peppered him with machine-gun fire (spraying the area with shattered glass) - but he was able to kill two more bad guys. McClane suffered bloodied feet after having to walk through shards of sharp glass. The FBI ordered city engineers to cut the building's power (within grid 212, an area encompassing 10 square blocks), exactly what Gruber wanted, so that the seventh "electromagnetic seal" or lock could be released ("the circuits that cannot be cut are cut automatically in response to a terrorist incident. You asked for miracles. I give you the FBI").

The safe's vault opened, to the tune of Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" movement from the 9th Symphony, revealing the bonds. The FBI then ordered fully armed helicopter support to approach the rooftop (rather than transports), while Gruber planned to blow the roof when they touched down (and then escape with the bonds in an emergency vehicle readied for him in the basement). McClane confessed to Powell that he wanted to convey to his wife that "she's the best thing that ever happened to a bum like me" and to apologize for not being supportive of her. Meanwhile, ambitious LA TV reporter Richard Thornburg (William Atherton) tracked down Holly's address and forced his way in to interview Holly and John's two children. McClane confirmed, from investigating the roof, that Gruber had set it to be detonated with C4 explosives - and radioed Powell to warn him of the double-cross: "The whole roof of the building is wired to..." but was seized by Karl before he finished his message.

They viciously fought against each other, as the FBI helicopters (now armed with guns) approached, and Gruber learned from Thornburg's exclusive TV report (and a family portrait at Holly's desk) that McClane's wife was Holly Gennero. As he ordered the other hostages to the roof, Gruber kidnapped Holly as his own personal hostage. After their long struggle, McClane presumably killed Karl by strangling him with a heavy chain, and then charged up to the roof where he: (1) discovered that Holly was missing and had been taken prisoner on the 30th floor, and (2) ordered the hostages to flee downstairs to escape the wired-to-blow roof. However, he was misinterpreted as being one of the terrorists by the FBI agents in the helicopters and was shot at ("I'm on your side, you assholes!"). He then unraveled a long fire hose, tied himself to it, and jumped off the side of the building as he was assaulted a second time by helicopter fire. At the same time, Gruber detonated the roof and destroyed one of the helicopters in the process.

McClane precariously dangled over the face of the skyscraper, then shot out the large pane of glass in front of him, swung himself into another floor, and untied himself before being dragged to his death. Meanwhile, Argyle foiled the escape scheme in the basement by ramming the emergency vehicle, driven by Theo, that was preparing to take Gruber from the building - he also knocked Theo unconscious. McClane confronted Gruber (holding a gun on Holly in front of him) and one other remaining terrorist, asking about the incredulous robbery that required the destruction of the entire building ("Why'd you have to nuke the entire building, Hans?") - Gruber replied that it was to make it look like everyone died. McClane was forced to drop his gun and admit "You got me," but still managed to shoot them (with a loaded gun with his last two bullets, taped to his back) - he injured Gruber ("Happy trails, Hans") and killed the second remaining terrorist. In the exciting and climactic confrontation between McClane and Gruber, the injured Gruber stumbled backwards and crashed through a pane of glass while holding onto Holly's arm and metal watchband, nearly dragging her with him.

McClane rushed forward and grabbed her, released the band, and watched as Gruber unforgettably fell to his death 30 stories below, while Robinson watched and commented from the ground below: "Oh, I hope that's not a hostage." Bloodied and exhausted, McClane joyously kissed Holly. As they exited from the front of the building, McClane had his first face-to-face meeting with Powell, and introduced him to his wife (who noticeably identified herself as "Holly McClane"). As Robinson senselessly charged McClane with responsibility for Ellis' murder, property damage, and interfering with police business, terrorist Karl - thought to be dead - suddenly appeared screaming and aiming a machine gun at McClane. Powell drew his gun, the first time he had done so since accidentally killing a 13 year-old boy years earlier, and decisively shot him dead. As limo driver Argyle drove in to pick up the couple, TV reporter Thornburg attempted to interview McClane about his "incredible ordeal" - Holly punched him squarely in the face during the live broadcast ("Did you get that?").

Argyle joked as he prepared to drive them away: "If this is their idea of Christmas, I've gotta be here for New Year's," to the tune of Bing Crosby's singing of: "Let It Snow." Film Notables (Awards, Facts, etc.) This highly-acclaimed, big-budget action film (and quintessential guy film) was the first in a series of films stretching over a period of 20 years, featuring Bruce Willis as wise-cracking, tough-guy NYC police cop John McClane with real human vulnerabilities, the protagonist in all four films. A fifth film was also added to the series: A Good Day to Die Hard (2013). 11 terrorists were killed (including the chief terrorist who fell off the building). Based on Roderick Thorp's 1979 novel Nothing Lasts Forever. Nominated for four Academy Awards (with no wins), including Best Sound Effects Editing, Best Film Editing, Best Sound and Best Visual Effects. From a production budget of approximately $28 million, the film's box-office was $83 million (domestic) and $140.7 million (worldwide).

The film (and its many sequels) were known for McClane's oft-censored line of dialogue: "Yippee-kai-yay, motherf--ker." Lt. Bruce McClane Hans Gruber | Villains Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia Who said we were terrorists? „ ~ Hans Gruber's most famous quote He was once part of the Volksfrei West German terrorist group, but was expelled from the group, presumably for being too radical. At the time the film takes place, Hans leads a group of heavily armed, well-funded mercenaries and organizes the takeover of a massive Los Angeles skyscraper that houses the offices of the Nakotomi Corporation. During this, they take over 30 employees hostage. When the FBI tries to negotiate, Hans orders the release of various terrorist leaders around the world and a couple helicopters on the building's roof. However, this is all an elaborate ruse to distract the police from the heist of $640 million in untraceable and negotiable bearer bonds that are kept in the building's vault. “ And when Alexander saw the breadth of his domain, he wept, for there were no more worlds to conquer...

„ ~ Hans Gruber Gruber takes advantage of the company's Christmas Eve party, when only a limited number of people are in the building. His men take out the limited group of security guards, seal off the building, and cut the phone lines. He then leads his men to the party upstairs and takes all the guests hostage except for NYPD cop John McClane , in town visiting his estranged wife Holly. John managed to make it to a stairwell and head upstairs into the unfinished portion of the building. Gruber talks to Head of International Trading, Joseph Takagi, and tries to coax the building's vault code out of him, but Takagi claims that he doesn't know the code and bravely asserts that they will just have to kill him. Gruber obliges this request and shoots Takagi in the head. John sees this and flees, realizing that the terrorists are hostile. In an attempt to get help, John pulls the fire alarm. Gruber tracks what floor this came off of and sends a terrorist onto the floor to kill him.

When McClane kills the terrorist, Gruber simply sends more men after him and proceeds with his master plan, which involved waiting for the FBI to cut the power, which would open the final magnetic lock on the vault. The hostages would then be sent up to the helipad on the roof, which would be blown up with C-4, confusing the feds and allowing the villains to escape in an ambulance. Although the charges had been put in place, McClane killed a henchman and took the detonators he had been carrying. A cat-and-mouse game follows between McClane and Gruber, in which the two communicate through the use of walkie-talkies where they learn more about each other. Gruber found out who McClane was through the assistance of a Nakatomi executive who met McClane before the attack, but he didn't find out McClane's relation to Holly, who was using her maiden name, Gennero. In an act of desperation, Hans headed up to the unfinished floors to retrieve the detonators, where he ended up meeting McClane. Using an alias and an improvised American accent, he posed as an escaped hostage, but he gave himself away by holding his cigarette in European fashion.

His henchmen arrive, and a violent shootout ensues. Hans orders his men to shoot up the glass walls of the offices. Despite being barefoot, John runs over broken glass and escapes. However, Hans retrieves the detonators. Death Gruber then had the hostages sent up to the roof. The explosion still went off, but McClane managed to save the hostages. Meanwhile, Gruber had accidentally discovered Holly's relation to McClane after seeing a news report, and held her hostage in the vault room. McClane managed to survive by tying a fire hose to his waist and jumping off of the building and shoot through a window to gain admittance to the building. John tapes his Beretta 92F pistol to his back and surrenders his MP5 machine gun to save Holly. Gruber lets his guard down and prepares to kill McClane, who puts his hands behind his head, only to pull his pistol and kill the remaining terrorist and shoot Hans in the shoulder, shattering a window. Gruber managed to grab onto Holly's watch and attempted to shoot John, but John unclasped her watch just in time and Hans fell to his death on the pavement 30 stories below. Deputy Police Chief Dwayne T.

Robinson uttered Gruber's immortal epitaph: "I hope that's not a hostage!" Legacy His brother, Simon Gruber , would later plant liquid binary bombs all over the city of New York in the 1995 sequel, Die Hard With a Vengeance. He forced John McClane to solve various riddles and puzzles to avoid more explosions under the guise of revenge. While the city's police was distracted with this, he stole gold from a federal wall street bank. To prevent the police from following him, he pretended to put the gold on a ship and destroy it, but he really smuggled it into Canada where he planned to melt it into statuettes of the Empire State Building so he could smuggle it out of the country. However, John got off of the ship that was to be destroyed and tracked him down, killing him in a helicopter explosion after telling him to give Hans his regards.

Even though he stated that he thought that his brother was an asshole, he did state that "life has its bonuses", implying that part of his motive was indeed revenge for his brother's death, and later confirming this by saying "there's a difference, you know, between not liking one's brother and not caring when some dumb Irish flatfoot drops him out of a window.". Trivia He was portrayed by the late Alan Rickman, who is also known for his role as Severus Snape , the Sheriff , and Judge Turpin . It was his first feature film role. Alan Rickman's performance was so highly praised that the character is consistently included on lists of some of the greatest villains of all time. Gallery Actor Alan Rickman, Known for ‘Die Hard’ and ‘Harry Potter’ Series, Dies at 69 | KTLA Actor Alan Rickman, Known for ‘Die Hard’ and ‘Harry Potter’ Series, Dies at 69 Posted 4:55 AM, January 14, 2016, by CNN Wire , Updated at 10:16AM, January 14, 2016 Share this: Email This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated.

Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. Alan Rickman, the British actor who played the brooding Professor Severus Snape in the “Harry Potter” films years after his film debut as the “Die Hard” villain Hans Gruber, has died after a short battle with cancer, a source familiar with his career said Thursday. Alan Rickman attends the World Premiere of “Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows – Part 2” at Trafalgar Square on July 7, 2011, in London. (Credit: Ian Gavan/Getty Images) He was 69. A smooth-voiced London native, Rickman worked on stage with the Royal Shakespeare Company and in UK television projects before earning his first film role: the German terrorist Gruber, opposite Bruce Willis’ John McClane, in 1988’s “Die Hard.” He had been in Hollywood only two days. It ended up being one of film’s more memorable villainous roles, but he told The Guardian in 2015 that he almost didn’t take it. “What the hell is this? I’m not doing an action movie,” he said was his reaction after reading the script.

But, he said, the progressive storyline won him over. “Every single black character in that film is positive and highly intelligent,” he said. “So, 28 years ago, that’s quite revolutionary, and quietly so.” Despite wide acclaim as an actor, Rickman never won an Oscar in a career that spanned parts of four decades. He did win a BAFTA Award for supporting actor in “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves” and was nominated three other times, including for his roles in 1990’s “Truly Madly Deeply” and “Sense and Sensibility” in 1995. He won a Golden Globe in 1997 for best actor in the HBO biopic “Rasputin.” Rickman is probably best known to younger filmgoers as Snape, the antagonistic and bullying wizard who, in the end, plays a crucial role in the Potter saga. He took the role in 2001’s “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” without knowing much about the role. “People thought I knew a lot, and I didn’t,” he said.

“When I was asked to do it, there were only three books written.” The author of the series took to Twitter to honor Rickman following the news of his death. ” We have all lost a great talent,” J.K. Rowling said in part. My thoughts are with Rima and the rest of Alan's family. We have all lost a great talent. They have lost part of their hearts. Alan Rickman, star of stage and 'Harry Potter,' dead at 69 | Fox News Alan Rickman, star of stage and 'Harry Potter,' dead at 69 Published January 14, 2016 Facebook 0 Twitter 0 Email Print Director Alan Rickman arrives for the "A Little Chaos" gala during the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto, September 13, 2014. REUTERS/Mark Blinch (CANADA - Tags: ENTERTAINMENT) - RTR4647A British actor Alan Rickman, a classically-trained stage star and sensual screen villain in the "Harry Potter" saga and other films, has died. He was 69. Rickman's family said Thursday that the actor had died after a battle with cancer.

Trained at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Rickman was often cast as the bad guy; with his rich, languid voice he could invest evil with wicked, irresistible relish. His breakout role was as scheming French aristocrat the Vicomte de Valmont in an acclaimed 1985 Royal Shakespeare Company production of Christopher Hampton's "Les Liaisons Dangereuses." Film roles included the psychopathic villain Hans Gruber in "Die Hard" in 1988; a deceased lover who consoles his bereaved partner in 1990's "Truly Madly Deeply"; the wicked Sheriff of Nottingham in "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves" in 1991; and a wayward husband in 2003 romantic comedy "Love Actually." Millions know him from the Potter films, in which he played the portions and defense against the dark arts teacher Severus Snape, who was either a nemesis or an ally — possibly both — to the titular teenage wizard. He appeared frequently onstage, earning Tony Award nominations for "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" in 1987 and Noel Coward's "Private Lives" in 2002.

Rickman was also a filmmaker, directing and co-starring opposite Kate Winslet in 2014 costume drama "A Little Chaos." Frequently charming in person, Rickman was, by his own account, uncompromising as an actor. During the filming of "Harry Potter," he maintained Snape's air of haughty disdain even off-camera. "The animal in me takes over," Rickman said in 2011 when he appeared on Broadway in Theresa Rebeck's play "Seminar." "You're as polite as possible, but it's not always possible." Rickman is survived by his partner of 50 years, Rima Horton, whom he married recently. Advertisement

Question: Who played the villain Hans Gruber in the film Die Hard?
Answer: Alan Rickman