It’s the question that has divided moviegoers for 36 years: IsDie Harda Christmas film? Fans of the acclaimedBruce Willisaction flick return to Nakatomi Plaza every year, as John McClane (Willis) fights his way throughHans Gruber’s (Alan Rickman) terrorist groupto save his wife on Christmas Day. (Fun fact: If you watchDie HardafterLove, Actually, you can enjoy Alan Rickman’s karma for cheating on Emma Thompson in the latter movie.) To some, the film’s Christmas setting is enough forDie Hardto qualify. But, naysayers and all-round humbugs cry that the guns, explosions, and Bruce Willis looking badass in a vest aren’t what Christmas is actually about — they’ve never been to Christmas with my family. Thankfully, the debate has been settled once and for all, as Bruce Willis himself has finally weighed in on the matter.
During theRoast of Bruce Willis(via@RealEmirHanon X) back in 2018, Bruce Willis closed the roast with a public service announcement aboutDie Hard. “Now please, listen very carefully,” Willis began. The other guests, including Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Martha Stewart, all leaned in, worried about what the beloved action star was about to say. Then, Willis shouted:
“Die Hard is NOT a Christmas Movie!”
Bruce Willis continued, joking, “It’s a god-damn Bruce Willis movie!” Just likeDie Hard 4.0, Willis' announcement received a mix of cheers and confused noises from the audience. We don’t want to tell a Hollywood legend who starred in the films in question that he’s wrong. But… he’s very, very wrong. It might not havereal elves, reindeer, Santa Claus, or the Hallmark logo,butDie Hardis about a man trying to re-establish his love for his wife on Christmas day. If that’s not the trappings of a Christmas film, then what is? Also, as the film is set in a major corporation in the 1980s, there’s plenty of snow (just not the kind that falls from the sky).
‘Die Hard’ Fans React to Bruce Willis' Announcement
As you might expect,Die Hardfans were getting readyto crawl through their air vents to find Bruce Willis after his shocking betrayal. Underneath the post on social media, true-believers rushed to defendDie Hard, laying out strategic arguments about why the action-classic perfectly captures the Yuletide spirit.
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“What the hell does he know???” wrote@popsofone. Meanwhile,@MarkAJones15explained that, if a film gets you in the Christmas spirit, it’s a Christmas movie, writing, “Easy to settle this debate…..which would you rather watch on Christmas…A Christmas Story? Or Die Hard? I submit Die Hard is indeed a Christmas movie.” The best argument comes from@GrabbyHayes, who one ups the entire fan base, asDie Hardisn’t just a Christmas film, it’s a Hallmark Christmas film. They explained:
“Guy travels across the country to try to put his marriage back together over Christmas…It’s a goddam Hallmark Christmas movie.”
