John McClane Could Fight Russians With Son In New Script
There’s news today about “Die Hard 5” — the sequel no one has been asking for and nobody really wants. Well aside from Bruce Willis and 20th Century Fox bean counters. According to TwitchFilm, filmmaker Noam Murro has left the fifth installment of the John McClane franchise due to shooting demands on “Xerxes,” aka the “300” sequel/prequel now called, “300: Battle of Artemisia” which is looking to go before cameras sooner rather than later.
Fox clearly doesn’t want to wait either and since Murro (“Smart People“) is no longer attached, Twitch says the likely replacement could be John Moore as the project has been offered to the filmmaker and is “his to take or leave.” Moore, who directed “Behind Enemy Lines” and “Max Payne,” seems much more suited for the project than Murro, but nothing’s concrete as of right now.
We’ve also learned that the script, written by Skip Woods (“X-Men Origins: Wolverine“), will involve McClane (Bruce motherfucking Willis, back again) battling local forces in Russia with his two sons. How a New York City cop ends up in Russia is anyone’s guess. And when was the last time the Russians were seen as our biggest enemy? Unless Ivan Drago pops up as the evil ringleader, it seems unlikely this will be an appealing story. “Spies Like Us” was great and all, but the Cold War is over. Let’s move on to something more relevant.
Willis has several interesting projects in the works, including Rian Johnson‘s much anticipated film “Looper” and Wes Anderson‘s “Moonrise Kingdom.” As is almost always the case, Willis’ best work comes when under the wing of an assured auteur (“12 Monkeys,” “Pulp Fiction“). However, when in the hands of studios or hacks, his acting CV is near dreadful. Pity he hasn’t figured that out after some twenty odd years in the business. No word yet on when filming on “Die Hard 5” is set to begin, but we’ll need to hear word that Moore has signed on board first.