Die Hard Die Hard Die Hard is a 1988 American action thriller film. It was directed by John McTiernan, and written by Steven E. de Souza and Jeb Stuart. It was produced by the Gordon Company and Silver Pictures, and distributed by 20th Century Fox. The film follows off-duty New York City Police Department officer John McClane (Bruce Willis) who is caught in a Los Angeles skyscraper during a heist led by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman). It is based on Roderick Thorp's 1979 novel "Nothing Lasts Forever". Made for $28 million, "Die Hard" grossed over $140 million theatrically worldwide, with the film
Die Hard of American History at the Smithsonian Institution. "Die Hard" established what would be a common formula for action films over the next decade, featuring a lone everyman against a colorful terrorist character in an isolated setting. Several of these films followed this formula were often referred to as ""Die Hard" on a _____", such as "Under Siege" (1992, ""Die Hard" on a battleship"), "Passenger 57" (1992, ""Die Hard" on a plane") and "Speed" (1994, ""Die Hard" on a bus"). Such a trend would continue until films like "The Rock" (1996, also dubbed ""Die Hard" on an island") changed the tone