YIPPEE KI-YAY: "Die Hard,” Bruce Willis, and the Reinvention of the Action Movie

When it was released in the summer of 1988, box office prognosticators did not have high hopes for Die Hard. It was up against Rambo III, the most expensive movie in history to that point, a new film from Arnold Schwarzenegger, and a new Dirty Harry movie as well. Every man of action in Hollywood had passed on the Die Hard script (strike one), which left it in the hands of Bruce Willis, a TV star (strike two) only known as a comic actor (strike three). Yet today, many consider Die Hard the greatest action movie ever made, with a precise economical script, serious heart, and standout performances from the entire cast, including Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson, and breakout star Willis.

More than that, near the end of the machismo-obsessed, steroid-infused ‘80s, Die Hard created a new type of action hero—a tough guy who shoots and quips, yes, but also bleeds and cries. And it launched a formula that was imitated by many other films in years to come, with a lone hero fighting bad guys on a battleship, a city bus, or Air Force One.

In Yippee-Ki-Yay, film critic and historian Jason Bailey tracks the creation, filming, reception, and afterlife of this legendary film, one of the most rewatched and obsessed-over movies of its era, as well as what came after, both series sequels and imitations. Based on original research, including access to rare materials in Hollywood archives, and extensive interviews, including with the cast, director John McTiernan, screenwriters Steven de Souza and Jeb Stuart, cinematographer Jan de Bont, and others, this is an essential account and a gripping read.