by It’s been over 30 years since Bruce Willis first uttered the iconic line “Yippee ki-yay, mother******” as NYPD detective John McClane in the classic action film Die Hard. Since then, McClane has become one of the most beloved and legendary big screen heroes of all time. Over the course of four sequels, audiences have loved watching Willis bring the wisecracking, world-weary cop back to kick more terrorist butt and save the day in increasingly outrageous fashion.
So when it was announced in 2010 that a fifth Die Hard movie titled A Good Day to Die Hard was in development, fans were thrilled. But the big question was – would Bruce Willis actually return to the iconic role that made him a mega superstar? After all, it had been over 6 years since 2007’s Live Free or Die Hard, and Willis had gone on to star in several other successful franchises since then like Red, The Expendables and Sin City. Plus, at 57 years old, could he still convincingly play the nearly indestructible John McClane?
Well, as we now know, Willis did indeed sign on to reprise his signature character once more in 2013’s A Good Day to Die Hard. But why? What made him decide to step back into McClane’s prickly, bloodied bare feet after so much time had passed? According to Willis himself in various interviews over the years, there were several key reasons why he just couldn’t pass up such a tempting opportunity.
Firstly, Willis has frequently stated that he genuinely loves playing John McClane after embodying the gritty wise guy for so long. It’s a role that fits the veteran action star like a comfortable old shoe. In an Empire Magazine interview before A Good Day to Die Hard’s release, Bruce said “I just love being John McClane. I could play McClane in my sleep at this point.” So there’s little doubt that slipping back into McClane’s dirty tank top feels wonderfully familiar and natural for Willis after having done it four times previously.
Plus, McClane has become not just one of Bruce’s most beloved characters, but also one of the greatest cinematic action heroes ever. Up there with Indiana Jones, James Bond, and Willis’ other legendary persona of Butch Coolidge from Pulp Fiction. A “blue collar James Bond”, as Willis has called him. Hence, being able to build further on McClane’s iconic legacy after his previous outing 5 years prior was surely greatly appealing to the superstar.
Willis has also frequently emphasized how he’s deeply connected to John McClane as a character, seeing aspects of his own personality reflected in the stubborn, wisecracking cop. Like his 2015 Comedy Central Roast, where Willis joked “I based my whole career on John McClane!”. In more serious interviews, Bruce has talked about how he and McClane share a similar sense of humor and working class underdog mentality. So there’s a genuine love there that likely reignited his passion for returning.
Furthermore, McClane’s famous franchise also holds a special place in the Hollywood icon’s heart due to how the original 1988 Die Hard catapulted him to A-list superstardom practically overnight. Bruce was mostly known for TV comedies like Moonlighting beforehand, with only one lead role in a major film (Blind Date) under his belt. But then Die Hard became a mammoth critical and commercial smash hit, grossing over $140 million worldwide and spawning those legendary, endlessly quoted McClane lines.
So Willis undoubtedly feels a deep artistic and professional connection to the unexpected game-changing franchise that took his fame into the stratosphere. It’s the movie series that allowed him to become one of the most sought-after action stars in film history. Speaking on his multi-decade, box office-smashing career since, Bruce said during his Comedy Central Roast – “It all started with Die Hard. I’m grateful for that!”
Now although 2013’s A Good Day to Die Hard generally received quite unfavorable reviews and underperformed commercially, that definitely wasn’t a factor in Willis’ decision to return years earlier when the project was first announced. At the time, there was little reason to expect McClane’s 5th outing wouldn’t be another solid commercial hit. After all, 2007’s Die Hard 4 had grossed a mighty robust $383 million globally despite also getting mixed critical reception.
Plus, Bruce’s other recent return to one of his hit franchises – The Expendables in 2010 and 2012 – had yielded two smash box office takes of $274 million and $315 million respectively. So following suit to rejoin another beloved iconic Bruce Willis character like John McClane in hopes of similar financial success seems like a reasonable expectation circa 2010. Nobody could’ve predicted the comparative disappointment of the final project upon release three years later.
Moreover, it’s become abundantly clear over his entire career that Willis doesn’t choose roles based on critical reception or Oscars buzz. He prioritizes having fun with characters he already knows and loves. Bruce said it himself in a BBC Radio interview before Good Day’s premiere: “I don’t pay too much attention to what any critics say. I just know that I’m having fun and I believe I can play this guy for another couple of films.”
That brings up another key point – franchise longevity and sequels motivated his return. Willis re-signed on for A Good Day to Die Hard fully envisioning it would just be the first of a couple more films where he’d play McClane again. Not necessarily a final bow (that position was recently taken by 2022’s lackluster Die Hard prequel Year One). Back in 2010 Bruce said, “I think we can do six or seven more when you tally them all up.” He hoped Good Day would spark more sequels.
Unfortunately the comparative box office disappointment of A Good Day to Die Hard quickly scrapped those planned follow up ideas. But when Willis agreed to the project initially, he clearly anticipated it being able to kickstart another string of McClane sequels in his early 60s and maybe even beyond. Much like aging stars Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger had done reprising their 80s/90s icons Rambo and Terminator for surprisingly successful modern sequels.
And on top of Bruce’s obvious motivations tied to his artistic passion and love for the breakout role that made him a household name, sources also confirmed in 2010 there was another key factor in his return that can’t be ignored – massive monetary compensation. Willis reportedly earned between $14-25 million salary to come back as McClane for A Good Day to Die Hard.
That exceeded the $10-12 million he made for both prior Die Hard sequels and easily amounted to one of the biggest acting paydays of his entire career. Of course, the studio knew they’d have to pony up equivalent to or exceeding his normal quote at the height of his stardom to convince Bruce to return following a 6 year absence. But that bloated paycheck was surely further enticement and tipped the scales when considering revisiting an old iconic role.
Taking all those reasons together into account, it becomes quite evident why Bruce Willis ultimately couldn’t resist reviving his legendary John McClane character one more time for 2013’s A Good Day to Die Hard in spite of his previous hesitations. Returning for big money to play the beloved character that made him a superstar in hopes of relaunching the lucrative franchise was too appealing for Willis to pass up. His abiding love for wisecracking McClane combined with the chance for morehit sequels and a massive $20 million+ payday made it practically a no brainer for Bruce.
Unfortunately his gamble didn’t fully pay off creatively or financially when considering hopes for more sequels. But regardless, Willis’ enduring affection for the role of John McClane is crystal clear. During press for his recent 2021 film Out of Death, Bruce reiterated “That character. John McClane. I just love him.” So even all these years later with no more sequels on the horizon and McClane’s mantle seemingly passed to Year One’s young version, revisiting McClane remains near and dear to Willis’ heart.
