Back in October of last year it was revealed that Len Wiseman is busy developing a new instalment in the Die Hard franchise that would take place prior to the original movie, albeit bookended with scenes of Bruce Willis’ John McClane in the present day.
During an interview with Collider for the upcoming TV series Lucifer, Wiseman has offered a few details about how the new project – dubbed Die Hard: Year One – came about, and the opportunities story-wise.
SEE ALSO: Bruce Willis: Die Hard prequel “is a very good idea”
“After doing the fourth one, there were so many conversations that Bruce [Willis] and I were having about what he put into the character for Die Hard 1,” said Wiseman. “That character comes in with so much baggage, emotionally, and experience. He’s already divorced, he’s bitter, his Captain hates him and doesn’t want him back. So, what created that guy? We’ve never seen the actual love story. We know its demise, but we’ve never seen what it was like when he met Holly, or when he was a beat cop in ‘78 in New York when there was no chance of him making detective. It’s always been something I’ve been thinking about, and now we’re doing it. And it ties in.”
Wiseman then touched upon Willis’ involvement, stating that: “The reason I say prequel/sequel is because I wasn’t going to do it without Bruce. I’m also not going to do it with Bruce being a cameo bookend gimmick. It’s really working into the plot, with the ‘70s having ramifications on present-day Bruce. It inter-cuts in a very fun, imaginative way with present-day John McClane. The film itself will take place on New Years’ Eve 1979, so trying to gear things towards that would be fun, if we could come out around the same time, but these movies take their own paths. [The younger McClane] has to be somebody that has the swagger and the confidence, but also the charm, the wit, the charisma and the toughness. It’s asking a lot, especially in somebody that’s younger. It has to feel like the guy owns it, rather than is trying to put it on.”
Are you excited about Die Hard: Year One? And who could you see playing a young John McClane? Let us know in the comments below…
https://youtu.be/awfT2dB6YmA?list=PL18yMRIfoszEaHYNDTy5C-cH9Oa2gN5ng
Originally published January 19, 2016. Updated April 14, 2018.
