DIE HARD Sequels Are A Hard Nut To Crack | Birth.Movies.Death. DIE HARD Sequels Are A Hard Nut To Crack The closest we ever came to a satisfying DIE HARD sequel. By Brian Collins Apr. 30, 2015 Apparently, the trick to coming up with a good Die Hard sequel is to grab something unrelated and refashion it to include John McClane. And if you think I'm exaggerating, consider the fact that only one of the sequels began life as one: the abysmal, universally loathed A Good Day To Die Hard. The three superior sequels were all originally written as non-McClane stories: Die Harder was based on a novel called 58 Minutes (a novel unrelated to the one that inspired the first film, and by a different author to boot), and both DH3 and 4 were based on existing spec scripts that were refashioned to fit into the series. But A Good Day? As awful as it is, and as completely out of character as John McClane may appear - somehow that was always meant to be a Die Hard. Go figure.

The best proof of this theory comes from Die Hard With A Vengeance, many fans' favorite sequel (it battles with Die Harder; I prefer 3 but I can't argue much with Harlin fans). First, a bit of fun history: Die Hard 3 was originally going to be set on a cruise ship, but Under Siege stole its thunder and the script was canned. LA based stories (one involving the subway system) were commissioned, but those were rejected by Bruce Willis. Finally, Fox/Willis found a solution: Jonathan Hensleigh's spec script that was titled Simon Says, which was also considered to be reworked into the next installment of the Lethal Weapon series, and even at one point Rapid Fire 2 (!), a film that never existed at all due to the death of Brandon Lee. Apparently the idea of just making his original script into an original movie was too insane for anyone to consider, and once the script was reworked, Willis approved, and the rest is history.

But here's the funny thing: many would agree that the first half of the film is superior to the 2nd, when exciting but not particularly inventive action scenes and a truly weak finale replace the first half's emphasis on suspense and tension, with McClane never even drawing his weapon until past the hour mark. That's not to say it lacked action - the frantic drive through Central Park and the terrific subway scene, where McClane boards the moving train by jumping onto it from the street above, are fine sequences. But in between them are the things people really remember about the film: McClane and Zeus (Sam Jackson) running around New York, solving Simon's riddles and bickering as the other cops got to do the more fun stuff like find a bomb that Simon has placed somewhere in one of the city's schools. There's also the matter of why McClane is involved, revealed about 15 minutes before the movie starts to falter: Simon is none other than Simon Gruber, older brother to Hans Gruber, last seen racing a Rolex watch to the asphalt around the Nakatomi building.

Of course, it's not JUST a revenge movie, as Simon has bigger plans, but the connection makes up for the fact that the movie lacks other ingredients from the first two films - namely Holly, Christmas, Al Powell (and Twinkies), and a more contained environment. What's funny about that is that according to Hensleigh, the first hour is almost word for word what he originally wrote as Simon Says (barring the obvious character name changes). The second hour isn't as good and that's the stuff they changed to make it more Die Hard-y! Not that it's BAD, really (well, the ending is, but before you bring up the original ending that's on the DVD - that's not very good either), but once Simon's grand plan is revealed and McClane is once again running around shooting everyone in sight, it's less novel - this is the sort of stuff we've seen before, and it was nice to have an hour or so built around McClane's underutilized detective skills.

His hangover prevents him from being too useful in the riddles, but he puts together a key part of Simon's plan (driving all of the police away from the Federal Reserve) and keeps track of things he learned earlier in the day (how the liquid bombs work, the stolen dump trucks) to help him later. By the time they're using a cable to make their way from a bridge to a moving ship, Willis and Jackson's chemistry is what's really keeping it afloat, not the story, and it's endlessly amusing to me that these scenes were the ones they spent time making sure lived up to the Die Hard legacy. One cannot discount the importance of John McTiernan, who is just as essential as his stars in keeping the 2nd half from being outright bad. He is by far the best director of the four who have made these movies, and his ability to wring tension out of every situation is something the other films sorely lack.

Check out the scene in Vengeance where McClane has to wear the racist sandwich board in Harlem - he holds the reveal of what it says until Zeus sees him, and from that point you sweat just as much as McClane, waiting for the inevitable moment where someone will take major offense to its message. Or the bit where McClane enters an elevator with four goons he's already pegged as being terrorists (his demeanor is way too chatty right off the bat - he knew long before he saw the badge that they were not who they said they were). To me, these bits are far more exciting than McClane spinning his car around to shoot some guys on some (suddenly rainy?) New York back road. McT sat out Die Harder (Renny Harlin* did a pretty good job in his own right, but it's the action in that one that keeps the Blu-ray returning to the player - not the plot or character work), and paid it no mind here - I don't know how you can watch this movie and walk away with any plausible theory that McTiernan and co. were acknowledging Die Harder's existence at all.

In Die Harder, John has moved to LA and taken a job with the LAPD, happily reunited with Holly and his children. Here, he's on the NYPD and his marriage is on even rockier terms than it was in the first film - there is no mention of their reunion or him working for the LAPD at all. The novelization does explain that he hated LA and went back to NY hoping to make it work long distance, but this quick factoid is delivered via John's inner monologue, as if the author was annoyed by the film's lack of explanation and added one himself - it seems a fairly important bit of catch up detail like that would have been explained on-screen/aloud, even if it was eventually cut. Continuity in the Die Hard series has never been its strong suit (at least two actors have played two characters, and McClane makes a joke about "another" Agent Johnson in DH4 even though he never met the first two), so the idea that the guy who directed 1 and 3 would choose to ignore 2 doesn't seem like a stretch. Regardless, to me this is the closest thing we ever got, and probably ever will, to a truly satisfying Die Hard sequel.

I enjoy the 2nd film a lot, but its frequent "It happens again!" plotting irritates me (why the hell is Dick Thornburg on that plane?), and again, it lacks any real character work for McClane. Live Free and A Good Day aren't even in the running (though, PG-13 edit or not, Live Free has by far the best callback to John's famous catchphrase), but with Vengeance - even with its lesser finale - I always feel like I'm truly seeing a new chapter in McClane's life when I watch it. When McClane pulls a very large splinter out of his arm with his bare teeth to use as a lockpick, I recognize the guy that had to drag himself into a bathroom in the original film, and his affinity for working class folk remained intact, something the next two sequels ignored entirely (particularly the 5th one, with McClane punching a random Russian guy for the crime of not speaking English). Sure, it woulda been nice if he reunited with Holly (or at least Al Powell) at the end of the film, but with each lesser sequel that followed, I grew to appreciate what Vengeance DOES offer all that much more.

*Fun fact: About 14 years after Die Hard w/a Vengeance, Harlin went on to direct 12 Rounds, a film that shamelessly ripped off its "Make the hero jump through hoops under the guise of revenge to distract everyone away from my robbery" plot, right down to intentionally crashing a moving vehicle even though the hero did things right. I don't know if this was his revenge for not being asked back for Vengeance, or just a hilarious coincidence, but either way I find it highly amusing. Related Items: John McClane | Heroes Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia „ ~ John McClane's famous catchphrase John McClane, Sr. is the primary protagonist of the Die Hard film series. He is an Irish-American NYPD Detective Lieutenant who has the gift to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, getting involved in many terrorist attacks, that he often has to stop by himself. He also worked with the Los Angeles Police Department for a year. He is played by Bruce Willis and carried a Beretta 92FS as his sidearm for many years.

Contents [ show ] Biography His first appearance was as a streetwise and wisecracking cop who travels to Los Angeles on Christmas Eve in an attempt to get back together with his estranged wife, Holly. When he arrives at her office skyscraper where she works, the building is taken over by a team of thirteen highly organized European terrorists, led by the suave yet sinister Hans Gruber , who intends on a heist of $640,000,000 in negotiable bank bonds that are in the building's vault. Barefoot and armed only with his Beretta 92F service pistol, he kills them all and drops Gruber out a thirty story high window when he attempts to kill Holly. His second appearance was in Die Harder, exactly one year later, where he took on a group of mercenaries who took over the Washington-Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C. Holly was on one of the planes that the terrorists were forcing to circle around the runways, desperately low on fuel. McClane took on all the terrorists again and killed their leader, Colonel Stuart , by lighting a trail of fuel which caused their airplane to explode as it took off in an escape attempt.

McClane's next appearance is in Die Hard with a Vengeance, where he is down in the dumps. McClane has become an alcoholic since Holly left him and he is lower than ever. McClane is suspended from the force for some antics that are never specified but he is reinstated when terrorist mastermind and genius Simon Gruber , plants bombs all over New York City and threatens to detonate them unless he goes through his twisted game of nearly impossible riddles and tasks, which send him careening from one end of the city to the other in a race against time with a tough, hotheaded shopkeeper named Zeus Carver . This is seemingly a revenge plot for his brother, but it is revealed to be a gold heist from the Federal Reserve. McClane later kills Simon by shooting his helicopter down into some power lines. In the fourth film, McClane is now in his fifties and winds up getting drawn into a plot with a young hacker by a new breed of cyber-terrorists to shut down the United States Government infrastructure and then rob it blind in the denouement.

McClane is able to outsmart the terrorists who use all their means to try and kill him, even tricking a fighter jet into attacking him while he is driving their semi truck. McClane later kills their leader, Thomas Gabriel , by shooting him through his own shoulder after he tries to kill McClane's daughter, Lucy . In the fifth film he stops a nuclear weapons heist in Russia with his son, Jack . He and Jack kill Yuri Komarov and Irina Komarov , his daughter. Jack kills Yuri by tossing him off a roof into helicopter roters and Irina commits suicide in an attempt to kill Jack and John by crashing her helicopter into the building they were in. The two return back home and reunite with Lucy. The sixth film is in the works, but the speculated plot involves McClane going to Japan with Lucy to recieve an honor from the Nakatomi corporation from the first film, only for it to be taken over by Japanese terrorists who are presumably trying to rob it. Characteristics McClane's appearance varies throughout the series, but the basis remains the same. It often consists of a flannel shirt, a pair of light trousers and a white tank top that is blackened over the course of each respective film.

McClane's hairline also noticeably recedes until the point of it being almost invisible in the fourth film. McClane was a small but muscular man. With a tattoo on his left arm and a slightly unshaven face, McClane cut quite the intimidating figure when dealing with criminals. McClane had a scar on his left eyebrow that recieved further damage in both Die Hard and Die Hard 2. The scar can still be seen in 'Die Hard with a Vengence' but goes missing in the later sequels. John is an average American man still stuck in the 20th century. With his cocky nature, McClane is able to stir up friendships quite easily as seen by his interaction with airplane passenger in the first film. However, this cocky nature also lands him in trouble with other authority figures in the series such as Dwayne T. Robinson and Carmine Lorenzo. Wisecracking and a smirk whenever he talks to someone, McClane held a very laid back and cool approach to dealing with the people around him, this ease would quickly disappear, however, when faced with life threatening occurrences such as Nakatomi and Dulles Airport.

Early in the series, McClane seems quite taken aback by the death of Takagi, however, by the end of the series, it is quite common to McClane, who makes a trademark witty retort to his lifeless enemy. While subtle, McClane's character does change slightly in every film. In the first 'Die Hard' McClane comes off as a little resevered and hard edged, which can be attributed to the marital problems, jet lag and the fact that he's in a situation he feels uncomfortable in. In 'Die Hard 2', McClane comes off as a lot more light-hearted and jokey. This is probably due to the fact that this is the only time in the series where he's shown happily married with no personal struggles to be found. Five years later we find McClane in 'Die Hard with a Vengeance' has hit rock bottom, having not spoken to Holly in a year and has become an alcoholic. McClane here is closer to how he was in the first film albeit in a more foul mood due to his hangover. In Live Free or Die Hard, McClane is shown to be bitter about his previous heroics, saying they cost him his family.

McClane was a heavy smoker during the first three Die Hard films, lighting up whenever he got a chance to relax. In "Die Hard 2" while running to catch Esperanza's plane on the runway, McClane states "[He's] gotta quit smokin' cigarettes." In "Die Hard with a Vengeance" McClane only lights up once, probably due to the fact that he never got a real chance to relax, especially since he spent a lot of the film running. Towards the end of the film, McClane is seen pulling out a packet of cigarettes, only to throw them away when he realizes that they're soaking wet. He's never seen smoking in either "Live Free or Die Hard" or "A Good Day to Die Hard", possibly because he quite smoking before the events of "Live Free or Die Hard". Bruce Willis was behind this change. A non-smoker himself, he didn't want children to go see McClane glorifying smoking. McClane was also a heavy drinker in "Die Hard with a Vengeance" and most likely raised Catholic, as he knew how to do the sign of the Cross and told Zeus how to do it properly.

Appearances Bruce Willis plays John McClane in five films: Die Hard (first appearance) Die Hard 2: Die Harder Die Hard with a Vengeance Live Free or Die Hard A Good Day to Die Hard John McClane (Character) John McClane (Character) from Die Hard (1988) The content of this page was created by users. It has not been screened or verified by IMDb staff. There may be more photos available for this character. To select more photos to be displayed in this character's gallery, click the Edit Photos link. Overview Biography: John McClane, Male, Irish-American, born on the 11th of August 1957 New York City... See more » Alternate Names: Det. John McClane / John McClane Elf / John McLane / Lt. John McClane / Officer John McClane Filmography ... aka "Die Hard 5" - USA (informal title) ... aka "Die Hard: Last Day" - Japan (English title) (imdb display title) ... aka "Die Hard 4.0" - Australia, Ireland (English title) (imdb display title), South Africa (English title), UK (imdb display title), USA (working title) ...

aka "Die Hard 4: Live Free or Die Hard" - South Africa (English title) (TV title) ... aka "Die Hard: With a Vengeance" - Australia (imdb display title), Canada (English title) (imdb display title), Ireland (English title) (imdb display title), UK (imdb display title) ... aka "Die Hard 3" - Japan (English title) (imdb display title) From A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) Murphy : He'll be lucky to get life. John McClane : He can never get out of his own way... He had a lot of problems... He's still my kid. Murphy : I know. But it's Russia. They do things differently over there. John McClane 9/10/12 Development John McClane was originally based on the fictional character Detective Joe Leland from Roderick Thorp's novel, Nothing Lasts Forever. Die Hard villain Hans Gruber describes him as "just another American.... He is described as being a foul-mouthed, cigarette-smoking, no-nonsense New York cop with an itchy trigger finger and a never quitting maverick spirit.

Willis portrayed a character that men in the 90's could relate to. His smoking habits, his hate for new technology, relationship problems, and so much more. McClane's marriage is in a constant state of crisis, his vigilantism and disregard for authority have put him in danger of losing his job more than once, and he is described as "two steps away from becoming a full blown alcoholic", which McClane jokingly upgrades to only "one step". Profile/Depiction In Die Hard (1988), John McClane is an Irish American detective with the New York City Police Department and has been an officer for 11 years. At the beginning of the first film, he is recently separated from his wife, Holly Gennero (Bonnie Bedelia), who is using her maiden name. Holly moved to Los Angeles several months earlier to pursue a career, leading to their separation. They have two children, Lucy and John. On Christmas Eve, McClane visits his wife at her workplace at the Nakatomi Plaza.

At the same time, Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) initiates his plan to steal $640 million in bearer bonds and takes the Nakatomi Company employees, including Holly, who is takenhostage, posing as terrorists to draw attention away from the theft, their final plan being to blow up the building and make it appear as though they died with the hostages in the explosion. McClane escapes detection and manages to hide throughout the building, killing the terrorists one by one. When McClane meets the terrorist's leader, Hans Gruber, a huge battle ensues and McClane throws Gruber out the window. After the events of Die Hard, McClane moves to Los Angeles, is promoted to lieutenant and is transferred to the Los Angeles Police Department. During this time, McClane appears to have become a national hero. Dialogue in the second film reveals that he was featured in People Magazine, did a spot on Nightline, and was referred to (by Colonel Stuart) as "the policeman hero who saved the Nakatomi hostages" along with a local news crew.

In Die Hard 2 (1990), which takes place on Christmas Eve, McClane discovers that mercenaries have seized control of Washington Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C. They take control of the airport's communications and threaten to cause plane crashes unless their demands are met. Holly is traveling on one of the planes and is stranded as her plane circles overhead. McClane discovers a conspiracy between the mercenaries and an active military unit. He foils their plans and provides a visual landing signal for the circling aircraft by exploding the plane the villains were using for their exit strategy. Source: "Icons of Action: John McClane" theactionelite.com Web 9/11/12 In the third film, Die Hard with a Vengeance, McClane is back in New York. He is now separated from his wife, suspended from the police force, and a borderline alcoholic. A terrorist who goes only by the name "Simon" (Jeremy Irons) threatens to blow up various locations in the city unless McClane will play his exhilarating version of Simon says. McClane must solve a number of riddles and challenges in order to keep the bombs from going off.

He receives the reluctant help of Zeus Carver (Samuel L. Jackson), a shopkeeper from Harlem who had saved McClane after the first challenge "Simon" had put him through. The FBI finally reveals that "Simon" is in fact Simon Peter Gruber, the brother of Hans Gruber, who is attempting to kill McClane in revenge for his brother's death in the first film. In a subsequent revelation, McClane discovers that revenge is only a timely and clever cover story to conceal the true purpose behind his terrorist activities: the forced depletion of New York's Federal Reserve. With the help of Carver, McClane tracks Simon to the Canadian border. There, in a decisive final confrontation with the latter in a helicopter, McClane puts an end to Simon's plan with a handgun and a power line. Source:"John McClane Quotes (Page 6)" moviefanatic.com Web 9/11/12 In Live Free or Die Hard (2007), which takes place on Independence Day, McClane is assigned to take hacker Matt Farrell (Justin Long) into FBI custody (McClane is mentioned as having been on the force for 30 years at the time of this film).

In this film his rank, besides being a senior detective, is detective lieutenant. They soon discover that a group of terrorists, led by Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant), are conducting a fire sale and are taking out the nation's infrastructure (including power plants, traffic lights, transportation, and financial markets). McClane and his wife are divorced and McClane is not on speaking terms with his daughter, Lucy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). During the course of the film Lucy is kidnapped by the terrorists as leverage against McClane. McClane's previous actions seem mostly forgotten, as Farrell was unaware of his past and McClane is somewhat cynical about what he did. With help from Farrell, McClane manages to yet again thwart a disaster, shooting through his own shoulder to kill Gabriel. His actions also seem to restore his relationship with his daughter or at least help restore it as the two are back on speaking terms again and Lucy introduces herself as Lucy McClane to Farrell when in the past she introduced herself as Lucy Gennero and apparently told guys her father was dead.

Family/Relationships Holly Gennero (formerly Holly Gennero-McClane) Source: “Yes, Another Post About Die Hard” yourturnheather.blogspot.com Web 9/11/12 Holly is the wife of John McClane. Over the course of the series their relationship becomes more and more strained and by the fourth film, they are divorced. They have two children together, Jack and Lucy. When Holly is first introduced in Die Hard, she works at Nakatomi Plaza, a skyscraper in Los Angeles, which is home to a Japanese corporation. Her marriage to John has been estranged ever since she took up her new job and he refused to relocate with her from New York. Holly lives in L.A. with their children. They quickly get into an argument over why Holly chooses to use her maiden name (Gennero) at work, and are separated for most of the film while John fights the terrorists. By Die Hard 2 they seem to be on better terms. She does not make in an appearance in the third & fourth movies. Lucy Gennero-McClane Bruce Willis talks 'Die Hard,' McClane and film No.

5 FacebookEmail Twitter Google+ LinkedIn Pinterest Bruce Willis talks 'Die Hard,' McClane and film No. 5 For John McClane, it all started at Nakatomi Plaza. Nearly 25 years ago, Bruce Willis' action character wisecracked his way through a hostage siege. Post to Facebook Bruce Willis talks 'Die Hard,' McClane and film No. 5 For John McClane, it all started at Nakatomi Plaza. Nearly 25 years ago, Bruce Willis' action character wisecracked his way through a hostage siege. Check out this story on USATODAY.com: CancelSend A link has been sent to your friend's email address. Posted! A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. 4 To find out more about Facebook commenting please read the Conversation Guidelines and FAQs Bruce Willis talks 'Die Hard,' McClane and film No. 5 Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY 8:00 p.m. ET Feb. 13, 2013 CLOSE x Share Actor Bruce Willis talks about coming back for the fifth installment of the popular 'Die Hard' film series.

He's back, with a son, in a film series with so much success that "no one could predict." Bruce Willis with the Nakatomi Plaza building in the background where the main action from the first 'Die Hard' movie took place. "It all started over here," says Willis. (Photo: Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY) Story Highlights Bruce Willis celebrates 25 years of 'Die Hard' and his character, John McClane. McClane has appeared in five 'Die Hard' movies, including 'A Good Day to Die Hard,' opening Thursday There's a 50-foot mural of McClane on the Fox lot CENTURY CITY, Calif. — For John McClane, it all started at Nakatomi Plaza. Twenty-five years ago, Bruce Willis' action character wisecracked his way through a hostage siege at the fictional office building in 1988'sDie Hard. McClane lost his shoes, and his white T-shirt turned black from the many bomb blasts and fireballs he encountered. But in the end, the good guy prevailed and a blockbuster action franchise exploded into pop culture.

"It all started over here," says Willis, looking up at Fox Plaza, the building that filled in for Nakatomi Plaza during the shoots in this L.A. suburb. "It was cold out like now. And I spent a lot of time on that roof." He recalls that "the filming went by so quickly, not unlike the last 25 years. "We made a great movie out of a building. And there are about seven more (structures) that have been built around it since then." MORE: Action hero Willis on gun control Much more than the upscale office park neighborhood has changed. Willis, now 57, no longer has the black hair that the younger McClane sported. His fully shaved head now shows small growths of white. He also has shoes, sporting perfectly shined Pradas along with an immaculately tailored dark suit. But the sense of amazement over what took place after Die Hard wrapped never changed. "I never gave it much thought. I thought, 'Well, that happened,' " says Willis. "But no one ever knows when a film is going to take off.

No one could predict this." Fueled in part by Willis' instant catchphrase "yippee ki-yay,'' the John McTiernan-directedDie Hard earned $140.8 million worldwide and spawned a franchise that has tallied $1.1 billion. The fifth installment, A Good Day to Die Hard, opens Thursday and features McClane traveling to Russia to aid his grown, estranged son (Jai Courtney) who happens to be a CIA operative. "Did I think at the time that 25 years later I would still be making these films?" says Willis. "You should call the president of the United States and ask him what's going to happen 25 years from now. No one has any idea." Fox Studios executives have been so overwhelmed by the Die Hard success that on Jan. 31 they unveiled a fitting anniversary present: a 50-foot-high permanent mural on Stage 8 of the movie lot featuring McClane crawling through the air ducts of Nakatomi Plaza.

As his A Good Day to Die Hard co-stars and two of his daughters with ex-wife Demi Moore — Tallulah Belle, 19, and Rumer, 24 (they have a sister, Scout, 21) — looked on, Willis hit a detonation button that dropped the mural curtain and set off enough fireworks to trigger a symphony of car alarms in the studio's parking garage. A Good Day to Die Hard director John Moore still stands in awe of the groundbreaking action film. "Die Hard is in a league all of its own," says Moore. "Bruce was born to be John McClane, and the combination with McTiernan is hall of fame. We're honored to be mentioned in the same paragraph." Two days later while sitting on a lawn chair at the Four Seasons Hotel, Willis goes from joking about his need for a garden hose to quench his thirst after polishing off a glazed doughnut, to instantly being reflective about the honor. "I'm sure years from now we'll have a much clearer idea of what you should say," says Willis. "It's just awesome." Willis also laughs that he had to endure some ribbing from his daughters, who had a number of questions about the mural.

"They were cracking up, saying that my eyes are not blue. And they don't remember me with hair. And they were saying, 'You're making that up, right, about the billion dollars?' But they were very nice about it." The size of the mural is such that "they say you can see it from outer space,'' he says. "The guys in the shuttle are going to be like, 'Is that John McClane down there?' It's like that thing that came from another world." Willis was very much in another world in 1987 when he and McTiernan shot the movie. At the time, he was the wisecracking star of ABC's private detective comedy Moonlighting alongside Cybill Shepherd, but he found an 11-week window to make his foray into action films. Willis seamlessly made the transition, bringing his Moonlighting smart talk to the big screen. He insists his "yippee ki-yay'' line was an ad-lib reaction to phone taunting by archvillain Hans Gruber (played with wicked relish by British actor Alan Rickman). "That was me," says Willis. "I gave my take on Alan Rickman calling me Mr.

American Cowboy." The film immediately established several themes that would continue throughout the franchise — lots of explosions, strong yet dysfunctional family dynamics (starting with McClane's estranged wife being one of the Nakatomi hostages), and a lack of outward emotion, even when it came to leaving a message for his wife in the face of certain peril. "There was one scene where I thought I'd show just a little whisper of emotion," explains Willis, "and John McTiernan said, 'I don't want that.' " It all worked, despite some fundamental confusion from the leading man ("I never knew what 'die hard' meant anyways — was it that I was hard-headed?" says Willis). And he has some regrets about the first film, like Gruber falling to his death from the building at the end. "We shouldn't have killed him off," says Willis. "He was the best bad guy I have ever seen in my life." But the film's place as an action classic was set immediately, and the box-office hits kept coming. Die Hard 2: Die Harder (1990, with $240 million worldwide) featured Willis trying to save his wife (Bonnie Bedelia) from a terrorist hijacking in Washington, D.C.

Die Hard With a Vengeance (1995, with $366 million) had Willis and Samuel L. Jackson trying to stop a bomber in New York City. Live Free or Die Hard (2007, with $383 million) featured Willis fighting Internet terrorists while protecting his grown daughter (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). Willis was sure the fourth was the final film and said as much. He shakes his head at the thought. "I was just probably scared or something. I cannot imagine not coming back," says Willis. "You get in these press conferences and it's like OK, here's something I should say, 'I'm never going to do another of these things.' " He signed onto A Good Day to Die Hard despite, once again, confusion over the meaning of the title. "I certainly don't understand the title," says Willis deadpanning. "It sounds very Cheyenne Indian. It seems like they have married a few cultures in there. But you can't question. You can't pick it apart too much." His nonchalance belies a real care for the iconic character. Director Moore says Willis' reputation as being difficult on a set stems from his desire to protect McClane.

CLOSE x Share Old school meets new school as John (Bruce Willis) and Jack (Jai Courtney) McClane take on Russian villains. "A lot of people want to create mythology about people's difficulty. It's a Hollywood thing. It's prophesied to you about how difficult something is going to be," says Moore. "Bruce is the 'd' word, but it's not 'difficult,' it's 'demanding.' As it should be. When you are Bruce Willis and everything you say can be immediately turned into a T-shirt, he has to be hyper-vigilant." "This is his legacy. He's difficult in that he works your butt off," says producer Wyck Godfrey. "You gotta respect where it's coming from: It started with him and it's going to end with him. I needed my thick skin on the day I landed in Budapest for the filming.'' While Willis took a jump from a parking structure to an air bag (followed by a real fireball) in the Die Hard original, those days are gone. With 58 approaching next month, Willis admits he leaves much of the dangerous onset stuff to the stuntmen. "It's a very big science now.

It's big business," says Willis. "They always keep it safe, even if it always doesn't look like it's safe." That's fine by Moore: "We don't ask him to drive the catering truck, either. We ask the stunt guys to play their parts. " But the sideways smirk is ever-present and the quips are almost as numerous as the explosions in the new film as Willis and Courtney try to intercept a nuclear weapons shipment. "There always has to be various elements of mayhem, explosions, and it has to be fraught with peril," says Willis. Recently, the genre itself has been perilous, as ventures by '80s action stars have seen weak box office. Arnold Schwarzenegger's The Last Stand (which opened ninth in January with $6.3 million) and Sylvester Stallone's Bullet to the Head (a $4.5 million opening weekend) both tanked. But Godfrey insists that Willis has a distinct advantage: his famous character. "It's John McClane," he says. "My kids and I have both grown up on John McClane.

It's different when you are dealing with a character that is known and loved like this." Godfrey says he has no concerns, insisting that confidential studio pre-release tracking shows the action movie will do "phenomenally well.'' "Trust me, we ain't worrying about Die Hard," says Godfrey. While the absentee-father McClane still has his own family issues that include an angry grown son, Willis relishes being a father, especially to 10-month-old Mabel Ray Willis (to second wife Emma Heming). The action star even insists he takes on diaper duty ("I hold the record for speed changing — I'm under seven seconds"). Willis says he lives to entertain Mabel. "It's like how can I make this child laugh today. I act out all of my parts. And the goofier I do, the better. ... It's all I want to do. Acting is so far down the road as compared to any time hanging out with my kids." But the jobs will continue and will stay loud for a while. Willis will reprise his role as Gen.

Joe Colton in GI Joe: Retaliation (out March 29), and he'll appear alongside Helen Mirren and John Malkovich in the aging-assassin sequel Red 2 (out Aug. 2). And Willis has dropped the idea of telling interviewers that he's not going to do another Die Hard, out of respect for his character. "I don't think we should kill him. I've certainly been shot a few times. And winged and dinged," says Willis. "But I don't want to see John McClane shot (dead) just yet." CLOSE John (Bruce Willis) and Jack (Jai Courtney) find themselves greatly outnumbered. Besides, there are years of potential box-office glory and maybe more title confusion ahead. "I think we should get more and more cryptic with the titles," he muses with his trademark smirk. "A Most Unusual Day to Die Hard and No Explanation for Why Today Is a Day to Die Hard. I think we should keep the audience guessing." 46 CONNECT TWEET LINKEDIN 4 COMMENTEMAILMORE Read or Share this story: NEVER MISS OUT Life Be a pop culture maven.

Get the news, reviews and the juiciest celebrity stories that keep you in the know, Monday-Friday. Here's how Bruce Willis will appear in Die Hard: Year One - Polygon Here's how Bruce Willis will appear in Die Hard: Year One pin Len Wiseman, the director behind the upcoming Die Hard prequel , has finally provided some detail on how Bruce Willis' John McClane will be incorporated into the film. Talking to Collider , Wiseman said that longtime fans of the series had never seen "the love story" develop between McClane and his ex-wife Holly, and wanted to rectify that. They also never got to meet McClane before he became the dedicated detective that he's best known for today. Wiseman added that he wanted to explore McClane's years as a beat cop in New York City (again, before he became an actual detective) and follow the struggles of McClane during that period. In order to allow this storyline to unfold and include Bruce Willis in the movie, Wiseman confirmed the film would time hop a little, going back and forth between 1978 and present day. "It's really working into the plot, with the '70s having ramifications on present day Bruce," Wiseman said.

"It intercuts in a very fun, imaginative way with present-day John McClane." With that being said, the director did confirm he would like the movie to take place on New Year's Eve in 1979 and wanted to hopefully release the movie around the same time — around New Year's, not around 1979. Willis is back on board for the film, but casting hasn't even started yet for the actor who will play a young McClane. When Die Hard: Year One is released, it will be the sixth film in the franchise, following A Good Day to Die Hard which was released in 2013. John McClane | Die Hard scenario Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia See also: John McClane on Die Hard On Christmas Eve 1988, John travels to Los Angeles to spend Christmas with his children. He first visits his wife Holly at the Nakatomi Plaza where she works, although she is initially pleased to see him they soon have a argument about Holly not using her marital name. Simultaneously, a gang of twelve terrorists led by Hans Gruber break into the Nakatomi Plaza and take all the employees, including Holly hostage.

The gang's intentions are to steal the $640 million dollars in negotiable bearer bonds that are locked in the building's vault. McClane fights his way through the building, outnumbered thirteen to one and contacts the police on a stolen radio. When the police send Sergeant Al Powell to investigate, McClane gets his attention by throwing the body of Marco , a terrorist he killed, onto his car. McClane fights to save the hostages and defeat the terrorists who are revealed to really be thieves after $640 million in the building's vault. Despite the arrival of the police and FBI, the only person who proves remotely helpful to McClane is Powell who McClane befriends over the radio. McClane rescues all the hostages but Holly who has been taken with Gruber and goes after him, discovering that he only has two bullets left in his police handgun and none in his stolen machine gun. McClane tapes the handgun to his back with Christmas gift wrap tape and uses the butt of the gun to knock out one of the three remaining terrorists .

McClane pretends to surrender to Gruber who holds Holly hostage, but grabs the gun from his back and shoots Eddie in the head, killing him and Hans in the shoulder, causing him to fall through a window. Hans tries to pull Holly with him, but McClane saves her and Hans falls to his death. Outside, McClane finally meets Powell face to face, but Karl , who wanted revenge as McClane killed his brother Tony and who McClane believed dead, arrives and takes aim at him, but he's saved by Powell who shoots Karl dead. McClane and Holly reconcile and head off in a limo driven by Argyle . See also: John McClane on Die Hard 2 Now reconciled with Holly (who has adopted a hyphenated last name), John is living in Los Angeles and is serving with that city's police force. John and the kids are in Washington, D.C., visiting Holly's parents. As he awaits the arrival of Holly's plane, though, mercenaries seize control of Dulles International Airport . The terrorist group takes control of the airport's communications and threatens to cause deadly plane crashes, including the plane that is carrying his wife, unless their demands are not met.

McClane, getting no help from airport security (led by Captain Carmine Lorenzo ), takes on the terrorists led by Colonel Stuart himself. He saves Leslie Barnes from being killed and kills three of Stuart's men. In retaliation, Stuart causes one of the planes to crash, killing over 230 people. Learning from a radio that General Esperanza has arrived, McClane tries to capture him, but is ambushed by Stuart and his men and barley escapes through an ejector seat. Finding Stuart's hideout with help from Barnes, McClane helps in an attack by an Army Special Forces unit led by Major Grant and kills two more of the terrorists, but can't understand it why when using one of the terrorists machine guns he wasn't able to cause any harm. Discovering that the gun only shoots blanks and that the Special Forces team are also on Stuart's side, McClane enlists the help of airport security (finally convincing him by shooting the blanks at the commander Lorenzo) in stopping Stuart, Esperanza, Grant and his men from escaping on a plane, but a news broadcast by Richard Thornburg causes chaos and panic so McClane gets a news crew to drop him from their helicopter onto the plane's wing where he jams the ailerons.

In a fight, McClane manages to kill Grant, but is kicked from the plane by Stuart, but not before he pulls open a fuel dump on the side of the plane. McClane ignites the fuel, blowing up the plane and killing the villains. Holly's plane, which has no choice but to land, is able to use the fire from the wreckage and fuel trail to land and the other planes follow. McClane and Holly are reunited and Lorenzo tears up a ticket McClane got as a Christmas present. See also: John McClane on Die Hard with a Vengeance John McClane is once again with the NYPD. He had separated from his wife, and by his own admission, is on the verge (if not already, he was described as being "two steps" away, to which John claimed it was actually only one) of alcoholism. Having been suspended, John had spent the entire previous evening drinking excessively, when he was recalled into duty as a bomber calling himself Simon demanded John's presence to endure several "games" throughout the day, or he'll use another bomb, and blow up a school.

Accompanied by Zeus Carver who saved him after as part of Simon's "game" he was forced to wear a sign saying "I Hate Niggers" in Harlem, McClane attempts to stop Simon who he learns is really Simon Gruber brother of Hans Gruber , McClane's old enemy from Nakatomi Plaza. While its believed by many that Simon wants revenge for his brother's death, McClane realizes that he has robbed the Federal Reserve Bank in New York of $140 billion in gold bullion and tries to track Simon down and retrieve the gold. Eventually McClane and Zeus track Simon to a boat and learn that the bomb at the school isn't real with Simon claiming he's not a monster. Simon instead intends to blow up the boat with the gold supposedly on it, but McClane realizes that its just a trick so he can get away with the gold as Hans tried the same thing. McClane and Zeus escape before the boat explodes and McClane, at the urging of Zeus, calls Holly, but drops the phone just as she comes on the line due to finding a clue on the bottom of the aspirin bottle Simon gave him for his headache.

McClane discovers that the bottle has the name of the town in Canada that Simon fled to and leads the Canadian Mounted Police in an attack on Simon's warehouse that recovers the gold and captures Simon's army. Simon, however, follows McClane's helicopter in one of his own and fires on it with an M-60. McClane's helicopter is forced to land and McClane draws Simon away, armed with a revolver with only two bullets in it. McClane shoots down a billboard wire onto the rotor of Simon's helicopter, causing it crash and killing Simon. Afterwards, at the urging of Zeus, McClane calls Holly again even though he knows she'll be furious with him for leaving her hanging earlier. See also: John McClane on Live Free or Die Hard In the 19 years since Nakatomi Plaza, McClane's actions seem to have been forgotten, leaving him bitter about it, as they cost him his family. He has also been promoted to Lieutenant Detective. He is divorced from his wife and estranged from his children as shown when he confronts his daughter Lucy and she calls him by his first name and its revealed that she tells all of her boyfriends that he's dead.

After the FBI asks for a senior detective to pick up hacker Matt Farrell in Camden, New Jersey and deliver him to the FBI, McClane's boss sends him to do it and he unknowingly arrives just in time to save Farrell from being assassinated by a bomb. When the assassins try to shoot Farrell, McClane gets into a gunfight with them and manages to kill three before escaping with Farrell. McClane delivers Farrell to Deputy Director Bowman of the FBI who directs him to take Farrell to Homeland Security. On the way, Farrell recognizes the voice of the woman directing them as Mai Linh , the woman who hired him. After tricking Mai, McClane talks to the head terrorist Thomas Gabriel who tries to get him to kill Farrell. Failing, Gabriel sends a helicopter to attack them, killing all but McClane and Farrell. McClane manages to kill the gunman by knocking over a fire hydrant, sending water spraying into the chopper and knocking him out of it, but Gabriel sends all the traffic in a tunnel straight at him in an attempt to kill him and Farrell. The attempt fails and McClane brings down the chopper by crashing a police cruiser into it and is believed dead in the wreckage by Gabriel's goon Rand .

McClane teams up with Farrell in an attempt to stop Gabriel's fire sale and travels to the Eastern Hub where he kills Mai and has Farrell stop an attempt to shut down the eastern power grid. Using video conferencing, McClane and Gabriel get to see each other face-to-face and after taunting Gabriel, McClane sends Gabriel's image to Bowman who identifies Gabriel. Gabriel blows up the Hub in an attempt to kill McClane and Farrell, but they escape. Deciding to go to Farrell's friend Warlock for help, McClane, who took flying lessons in an attempt to concur his fear of flying, flies Mai's helicopter to Warlock's house. Warlock refuses to help at first, but eventually helps them figure out that Gabriel's after something at a building called Woodlawn. Gabriel makes contact and threatens Lucy, which enrages McClane who goes after him with Farrell after Warlock tracks him to Woodlawn. Farrell sets off the alarms there to draw the FBI and after the two are separated, McClane defeats Russo and takes his gun (having lost his along the way) and radio and contacts Gabriel, pretending to kill Russo.

Gabriel tries and fails to make McClane see things his way so he tries to get Lucy to convince McClane. Lucy, who grew proud of her father during this time, instead tells him that there are only five bad guys left. McClane fights and kills Rand and jumps on top of Gabriel's semi as he and his men leave with Lucy and Farrell hostage. McClane kills the semi's driver Robinson and uses its radio to contact Warlock and have him connect him to Bowman. McClane gives Gabriel's vehicle's license plate number so the FBI can track him through LoJack tracking system and tries to take Gabriel down. Gabriel tricks an F-35 into attacking him, but McClane escapes and accidentally destroys the fighter jet. Spotting Gabriel's vehicle entering a nearby warehouse, McClane goes after him, getting there as Gabriel is using Lucy to force Farrell to decode financial data. McClane kills Trey and one of Gabriel's two remaining henchmen, but is stopped from harming Gabriel by him using Lucy as a hostage and is shot in the shoulder by Emerson . Lucy shoots Emerson in the foot with his own gun and tries to kick it to her father, but the gun is stopped by Gabriel, leaving McClane weaponless.

Gabriel decides to force McClane watch as he kills Farrell and Lucy before killing him and digs his gun into McClane's wound to torture him. McClane takes the opportunity and manages to fire Gabriel's gun, sending the bullet through his shoulder and into Gabriel, killing him. As Emerson goes to kill McClane, Farrell grabs McClane's gun and kills Emerson as the FBI finally arrive to help. Later, at Lucy's urging, McClane checks on Farrell, making sure he's alright and thanks him for saving Lucy's life, but threatens him when he shows interest in Lucy. McClane is annoyed when Lucy also shows interest in Farrell, but seems to have reconciled with her or is at least on the way to reconciling with her. See also: John McClane on A Good Day to Die Hard Around 5 years after Fire Sale cyber-terrorist attack and 22 years after the Nakatomi Plaza takeover, McClane learns that his son Jack has been arrested in Russia and is to appear in court in Moscow. He and Jack haven't spoke in years.

As he went on the plane to go to Moscow, he rides on the Russia cab driver to go to the courthouse, but the brutal heavy traffic in Moscow was preventing McClane to get to the courthouse. The cab driver lets McClane off after he sing since the courthouse wasn't too far from where they were. McClane then reach to the courthouse and saw Jack being taken to the courthouse along with an former billionaire name Yuri Komarov , who is also a prisoner. As McClane waited outside the courthouse, several car bombs exploded in the courthouse. As he sees Jack leaving in the blue van with Komarov, McClane jumps in the front in the vehicle to stop it. Jack was surprised that his father was there, but wasn't thrilled to see him. But when Jack sees Russian terrorists coming at him, Jack retreats back in the van before McClane can confront his son. As the van left, he went to the truck and sees a Cougar vehicle chasing Jack's van. As McClane drives around Moscow to pursue the vehicle through the streets of Moscow, a henchman fired a RPG-7 missile at the truck. McClane narrowly avoided the missile, but crash the vehicle. He steals the G-Wagon truck to continue the pursuit.

He drives off the bridge and drives on top of car-carrying trailer and several cars to get to the freeway below. As he pursued the truck, he rams the Cougar vehicle off the freeway bridge, but flipped over as well. As he distracted the terrorists from shooting at cops, Jack reluctantly picks up his father and they headed out. Then they reached an apartment, where it is actually a CIA safe house. McClane realizes that Jack is a CIA agent who was in an undercover operation for the past three years. Jack, along with his CIA partner Mike Collins , are looking for a file that Komarov has that will bring down Komarov's ex-partner Viktor Chagarin , who is crooked high-ranking Russian official. Then Collins was shot and killed by men working for Chagarin's enforcer Alik , who breached the safe house. McClane holds off the terrorists as Jack blew the wall open as they, along with Komarov, got away. They went to the hotel where Komarov kept a key to the vault where the file is. They also meet by Komarov's daughter Irina , but McClane was suspicious about her time of arrival due to the traffic in Moscow.

His suspicion was confirmed when Alik and his surviving men arrived. Irina reveals that she betrayed her father for money as Alik's men tie McClane and Jack up. As they take Komarov to the helicopter, Alik and his men assaulted both McClanes. As they we're about to be executed, Jack uses the hidden knife to cut himself and he and McClane attacked the men. Although they killed Alik's henchmen, Alik makes his getaway. Then the Hind-F helicopter, piloted by a terrorist name Vadim open fires at them. They jumped through the window and we through several objects to survive the fall. As McClane and Jack made to the safe place, Jack finally reveals to his father that Komarov and Chagarin we're partners in billion of dollars of weapons-grade uranium business in Chernobyl, Ukraine. But after the nuclear incident in Chernobyl, they fell apart badly and have since been feuding with each other since. Komarov says that the file contains incriminating evidence on Chagarin. As McClane pulls out the wound on Jack, they stole a car that contained weapons to head for Chernobyl.

As they arrived in Chernobyl, they see Komarov, Alik and Irina have arrived as well with many terrorists as well. As they loaded up, they went to deal with the men at the abandoned warehouse where the file is appeared to be in. As they reached the vault, they see Komarov there as well. When McClane sees Alik's body, he and Jack realized Komarov set them up over everything and Chagarin was just a target for Komarov's revenge for betraying him years before (Komarov had his hitman assassinate Chagarin). As they arrested Komarov, Irina, who is actually in league with her father, came to his rescue with their remaining men. As Jack went after Komarov, McClane went after Irina. AS he boarded the chopper, he kills the terrorist in the cargo hold. But finds he can't get in the cockpit. As Jack was under fire by the chopper's gun, McClane ties a chain to the truck and to the chopper. He drives off the chopper and it pulls the chopper down, bringing it off-balanced.

After Jack kills Komarov by tossing him off the roof and into the helicopter's rotor, McClane jumps off the off-balanced truck and through the glass of the warehouse. As Jack reunites with his father, Irina, enraged by her father's death, decides to use a suicide attack, but McClane and Jack jump into a water tank as the exploding chopper kills Irina, Vadim and their helicopter co-pilot. As Jack was looking for his father, he finds out that McClane got off the water tank before he did. As they we're walking away, Jack asked his father does always look for trouble or does it find him. McClane only replies that he "still asks himself the same question." Back in New York, McClane and Jack arrived by airplane. As they got off, they we're reunited with McClane's daughter Lucy, Jack's older sister. The reunited McClane family happily walks off together. Edit John is an average American man still stuck in the 20th century. With his cocky nature, McClane is able to stir up friendships quite easily as seen by his interaction with airplane passenger in the first film.

However, this cocky nature also lands him in trouble with other authority figures in the series such as Dwayne T. Robinson and Carmine Lorenzo. Wisecracking and a smirk whenever he talks to someone, McClane held a very laid back and cool approach to dealing with the people around him, this ease would quickly disappear, however, when faced with life threatening occurrences such as Nakatomi and Dulles Airport. Early in the series, McClane seems quite taken aback by the death of Takagi, however, by the end of the series, it is quite common to McClane, who makes a trademark witty retort to his lifeless enemy. While subtle, McClane's character does change slightly in every film. In the first 'Die Hard' McClane comes off as a little resevered and hard edged, which can be attributed to the marital problems, jet lag and the fact that he's in a situation he feels uncomfortable in. In 'Die Hard 2', McClane comes off as a lot more light-hearted and jokey. This is probably due to the fact that this is the only time in the series where he's shown happily married with no personal struggles to be found.

Five years later we find McClane in 'Die Hard with a Vengeance' has hit rock bottom, having not spoken to Holly in a year and has become an alcoholic. McClane here is closer to how he was in the first film albeit in a more foul mood due to his hangover. In Live Free or Die Hard, McClane is shown to be bitter about his previous heroics, saying they cost him his family. McClane was a heavy smoker during the first three Die Hard films, lighting up whenever he got a chance to relax. In "Die Hard 2" while running to catch Esperanza's plane on the runway, McClane states "[He's] gotta quit smokin' cigarettes." In "Die Hard with a Vengeance" McClane only lights up once, probably due to the fact that he never got a real chance to relax, especially since he spent a lot of the film running. Towards the end of the film, McClane is seen pulling out a packet of cigarettes, only to throw them away when he realizes that they're soaking wet.

He's never seen smoking in either "Live Free or Die Hard" or "A Good Day to Die Hard", possibly because he quite smoking before the events of "Live Free or Die Hard". Bruce Willis was behind this change. A non-smoker himself, he didn't want children to go see McClane glorifying smoking. McClane was also a heavy drinker in "Die Hard with a Vengeance" and most likely raised Catholic, as he knew how to do the sign of the Cross and told Zeus how to do it properly. Appearance Edit McClane's appearance varies throughout the series, but the basis remains the same. It often consists of a flannel shirt, a pair of light trousers and a white tank top that is blackened over the course of each respective film. McClane's hairline also noticeably recedes until the point of it being almost invisible in the fourth film. McClane was a small but muscular man. With a tattoo on his left arm and a slightly unshaven face, McClane cut quite the intimidating figure when dealing with criminals. McClane had a scar on his left eyebrow that recieved further damage in both Die Hard and Die Hard 2.

The scar can still be seen in 'Die Hard with a Vengence' but goes missing in the later sequels. Appearances/Actors Die Hard / Characters - TV Tropes Action Hero : Whilst McClane's ability to think on his feet is his strongest assett, he's not afraid to get his hands dirty. Action Survivor : From the second film onwards. Anti-Hero : He drinks, smokes, curses, bloodily dispatches his enemies, causes wide scale property damage and neglects his married life . The Alcoholic : In the third film a character comments that John McClane is two steps away from being a full-blown alcoholic. McClane corrects him by holding up a single finger and saying "One step." Badass Grandpa : From the fourth film onwards. His own son even lampshades this. Bald of Awesome : From the fourth film onwards. The previous three films are Balding Of Awesome . Being Good Sucks : He lives this trope.

Over the course of all five movies, his wife has divorced him, his daughter is distant from him, he's completely estranged from his son and when he tries to save him he ends up destroying a secret CIA mission that took three years to plan, and he simply finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time at all times. His fellow officers don't seem to care much for him, he's nearly an alcoholic, he's bitter, alone, and depressed, yet time after time, he continues to save the day simply because he's "that guy", as he puts it in his own words. Catch Phrase : "Yipee-ki-yay, motherfucker!" Car Fu : In the fourth movie, he used a car to destroy a helicopter. The Chew Toy : On top of the amount of abuse he takes in each film, his life in general just sucks. Chronic Hero Syndrome : Even if he doesn't like it, but in a world filled with terrorists, incompetent cops and innocent victims , someone has to be the hero. Combat Pragmatist : He's not above putting hairspray in your eyes, for example. Cool Old Guy : From the fourth film onwards. Cowboy Cop : Lampshaded.

In the first film, the first mook he kills tells him that he won't hurt him because there are rules for cops. He states that his captain keeps telling him that and proceeds to Pistol Whip the mook. Deadpan Snarker : A strong trait of his. Defective Detective : For John saving the day is much easier than saving a marriage. Dented Iron : Throughout the films, the injuries he takes leave him battered, bruised and bleeding. This is particularly notable in the first film, especially since he's barefoot for the entirety of the hostage situation. Destructive Saviour : Sorry, Washington DC and Moscow. Hope you have McClane insurance. Determinator : In the first film, he gets beat up, shot at, nearly blown up, jumps himself off a building and crashes through a glass window, his feet get lacerated, and he eventually gets shot in the shoulder. This does not stop him. The third film has him getting pistol-whipped, blown up, beaten, drowned, shot at, beaten, and blown up again. This makes him angry.

In the fourth film, he is shot at, blown up, shot at some more, thrown out of a car, beaten up by a Dark Action Girl , dropped down an elevator shaft, frozen, beat up again, shot at by a jet fighter, shot, and then shoots himself. He doesn't give up at any point. Experienced Protagonist : John McClane is a seasoned New York cop. Genius Bruiser : He's an excellent detective, and a devil in a fight. Good Is Not Nice : Rather downplayed in the first 3 films in that his behavior's still well-meaning and heroic, just that his actions on occasion can be more violent than necessary. Grumpy Old Man : As of the fourth movie. Guile Hero : His ability to think on his feet, adapt to his environment, and play mindgames with his opponents is what keeps him in the game. The Hero : Despite being an Anti-Hero , a major part of McClane's character is that he's less interested in defeating his opponents than protecting innocent people and preventing major disasters. He repeatedly gives his opponents chances to surrender, and wants the LAPD to take over and find a solution to the conflict that won't end with a pile of bodies.

He only takes action when there are no other options. Heroic Self-Deprecation : In the fourth movie, he explains that despite his heroic deeds in the first three movies, his life is a wreck, he's divorced with his wife and his children have little respect for him. Honor Before Reason : He'll often turn down bribes and blackmail, saving the day instead. Heartbroken Badass : He still loves Holly, even if they are not married anymore. It becomes a factor in With a Vengeance where he wants to get back with his wife, only for work to get in the way. Hypocrite : To an extent, he smokes, but tells other people that smoking is bad for you. Iconic Outfit : The singlet. Definitely the singlet. Even in Die Hard 2, in the snow, he's still just wearing a singlet under his parka. Improbable Weapon User : Down to his Combat Pragmatist tendencies, he'll use plenty of Improvised Weapons to get the upper hand, including chairs, computer monitors, rolls of wrapping tape, fire extinguishers, hairspray, cars, chains and whatever else comes to hand.

Indy Ploy : Most of his "plans" are these. Action Duo : With his dad. Ascended Extra : Like his sister before him, small role in the first movie and gets to hang with his father in the fifth movie, taking down terrorists with him. Bald of Awesome : Well, a really close buzz cut at least. Calling the Old Man Out : Considering he goes by "Jack" instead of "John Jr.", he calls his dad "John" and they were estranged for so long that John had no idea where his son even was before learning he was in Russia, let alone being a CIA agent. The Chessmaster : Compared to his father , Jack's plan took three whole years to set up and he presumably accounted for everything... except his dad. Complaining About Rescues They Don't Like : Jack wanted to be arrested so he could infiltrate The Mafiya /terrorists/Mafiya-terrorists and then his estranged dad suddenly appears to rescues him with a hugely destructive three-way car chase (John (small truck) vs. Jack (large truck) vs. Mafiya (giant armored truck)). Deadpan Snarker : Gets it from his dad. John: Need a hug?

Jack: We're not really a hugging family. John: Damn straight. Foil : The HBO making-of seems to indicate that he is — or wants to be — The Chessmaster to John's Indy Ploy master since he's a CIA agent who deliberately puts himself in dangerous situations, is described as "by-the-book", and his secret mission took three years to set up. Like Father, Like Son : It's pretty clear he's just as badass as his dad. Beard of Evil : Bearded and decidedly evil. Big Bad : The most memorable one for the Die Hard franchise. AFI agrees, ranking him #46 among its "Villains". Bond Villain Stupidity : He only slips into this at the very end. He even inverts this, chastising Karl for trying to kill McClane rather than lock him in the ventilation shaft. Brief Accent Imitation : He pretends to be an American hostage to trick John. The Chessmaster : He set a new standard for intelligent villains when the film first came out. He planned for just about everything, and almost anything that could have been considered a problem was just factored into the overall plan, such as the FBI responding to a terrorist attack instead of a robbery.

John McClane was pretty much the only thing he hadn't planned on. Dark is Evil : Wears a black jumpsuit. Determinator : He'll stop at nothing to kill John. The Dragon : Hans' right hand man and the biggest threat to McClane. Dragon Their Feet : Survives after his boss's death to make one last attempt on McClane's life. He's subsequently killed by Powell. Even Evil Has Loved Ones : He's deeply affected by the death of his younger brother Tony and subsequently spends the rest of the film hell-bent on killing McClane. Evil Counterpart : Can be seen as one to John. Both are Determinators who are Made of Iron who would do anything for their loved ones. Genius Bruiser : Karl may be impulsive, but he's not stupid. He almost catches McClane several times and gets the drop on him before their fight, throwing John's pistol away and crushing the radio. He also predicts that McClane will be trouble and winds up being proven right when the cop tries to warn the police and steals Heinrich's bag, not to mention killing other terrorists left and right. Grumpy Bear : Even before his brother gets killed, he comes off as very sullen.

Hot-Blooded : And then some! Big Bad : of the second film. Blood Knight : The only time he loses his composure is during his fight with John on the plane's wing, where he puts on a Slasher Smile while attacking John with a knife, and letting loose an Evil Laugh when he has John on the ropes. Colonel Badass : Leads his troops with military precision. Brief Accent Imitation : While impersonating air traffic control in order to crash the Windsor Air plane, he speaks with a Southern accent. Fin Gore : During his fight with John, he stabs him in the shoulder, and John responds by biting off one of his fingers. Karmic Death : Sending a plane full of innocents to their deaths is pretty unforgivable. So it's only fitting that he and his mooks are blown up on a plane. Knife Nut : Brings out a combat knife first against John, before the cop bites him. Knight of Cerebus : Not that the film wasn't already serious, but even Hans Gruber didn't murder a planeful of people just to prove a point.

That Stuart managed this despite John's best attempts (and his No-Holds-Barred Beatdown , below) arguably qualify him for Hero Killer status. Lack of Empathy : He kills a plane full of people on Christmas Eve and has zero remorse for it. Naked First Impression : His introductory scene had him practicing martial arts in the nude. No-Holds-Barred Beatdown : Beating McClane to a pulp and throwing him off the plane's wing in the finale. Of the series' Big Bads, he's the only one to physically beat the crap out of McClane. Too bad he didn't kill him, because McClane still shrugged off the beating and blew up Stuart's plane. Back Up Twin : Straddles the line. Batman Gambit : Wreaks havok to divert law enforcement attention from his real target. Big Bad : Of the third film. Big Brother Instinct : He may not have liked Hans, but... "There's a difference between not liking your brother and not caring when some dumb Irish flatfoot drops him out a window." Chronic Backstabbing Disorder : Simon betrays his Middle Eastern clients by trying to keep the gold instead of blowing it up and then tries to maximise his share.

He keeps at least some of his accomplices in the dark about the ultimate fate of the gold, and then kills them when they find out. In the alternate ending, he's killed his girlfriend as well a few months after the movie's over. Criminal Mind Games : Subverted, his quests are all part of a misdirection. Even Evil Has Standards : In spite of the money at stake, he will not murder children in cold blood for it. After all, "I'm a soldier, not a monster...though I sometimes work for monsters." Dark is Evil : Wears all black clothes. Fallen Hero : In a way. He wanted to protect the country. Then he decided that infinite wealth would be kind of nice. Hoist by His Own Petard : Doubly so; shot by McClane with his own gun, through a bullet wound that he was torturing McClane with. It's Personal : He really doesn't like John killing Mai well. Jerkass : Described as "not a people person." Unholy Matrimony : With Mai. Smug Snake : He believes himself to be on a higher intellectual plane then everyone else, particularly McClane.

The Sociopath : Has no problem with ruining an entire country by stealing all of its money, or how many people he murders in the tunnel to flush out McClane and Farrell. And that's not going into what happened when he blew the gas mains after Mai died. To be honest, he wouldn't give a shit. Weapon of Choice : A Jericho 941 pistol in stainless steel. Well-Intentioned Extremist : At least he claims to be. The fact that he's "getting paid for his work" kind of makes this hard to believe, though.

Question: In which series of films does the character John McClane appear?
Answer: Die Hard