DIE HARD Prequel MCCLANE Is Officially Dead At Disney Confirms Producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura

DIE HARD Prequel MCCLANE Is Officially Dead At Disney Confirms Producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura

The Die Hard franchise hasn't been at its best for some time, but there was at least some excitement surrounding plans for a prequel movie titled McClane. However, that's no longer happening at Disney...

By JoshWilding - Jul 29, 2021 02:07 AM EST
Filed Under: Action
Source: Polygon

It's been a long time since we've heard anything about Die Hard prequel, McClane, but it's now been confirmed that the movie is a victim of the Disney/Fox merger.

Before we get to that, though, some history for you: the sixth instalment in the franchise, McClane was set to be directed by Len Wiseman and would have featured two parallel storylines. One was set to follow NYPD detective John McClane in 1979, while the other would have picked up with the action hero in the present day as he's honoured in Japan for action in Nakatomi Plaza in 1988.

Fans didn't respond positively to the idea, and it's been a while since we've heard any solid updates.

Now, though, producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura has told Polygon that the project is, in fact, dead. "It's not happening. But what was really interesting was we actually came up with an idea to do it. It was a project that wasn’t Die Hard that then, eventually, shifted over to Die Hard."

"What was interesting about our idea was it allowed you the ability to meet the young John McClane and use Bruce [Willis]. So it was really interesting in that way. So you sort of got to see both versions of him. A bit [like The Godfather Part 2]. I don't know what [Disney's] plans are."

This could have been a fun movie, but it's hard to imagine that it would have been completely successful. Fox struggled to bring the franchise back on multiple occasions, and it might be best to just reboot the property at this point. That could be with a young John McClane, but a new lead with a similar tone might work best.

Do you think Die Hard should be brought back to the big screen?

GLADIATOR 2 Spoilers: Does Russell Crowe Return As Maximus In The GLADIATOR Sequel?
Related:

GLADIATOR 2 Spoilers: Does Russell Crowe Return As Maximus In The GLADIATOR Sequel?

GLADIATOR II Spoilers: Does Lucius Suffer The Same Fate As Russell Crowe's Maximus?
Recommended For You:

GLADIATOR II Spoilers: Does Lucius Suffer The Same Fate As Russell Crowe's Maximus?

DISCLAIMER: As a user generated site and platform, ComicBookMovie.com is protected under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) and "Safe Harbor" provisions.

This post was submitted by a user who has agreed to our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines. ComicBookMovie.com will disable users who knowingly commit plagiarism, piracy, trademark or copyright infringement. Please CONTACT US for expeditious removal of copyrighted/trademarked content. CLICK HERE to learn more about our copyright and trademark policies.

Note that ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.

1 2
MUTO123
MUTO123 - 7/29/2021, 2:15 AM


The last movie is irredeemable garbage (maybe the worst sequel in the last decade or so), nobody can get Willis to give a real performance anymore, and the idea of doing a John McClane origins story was just awful from the beginning. The best thing to do with the franchise at this point is to just put it out of its misery.
LilJimmy
LilJimmy - 7/29/2021, 3:13 AM
@MUTO123 - nobody can get Willis to give a real performance anymore

All he does is simply read the lines now and goes home. He even does a ton of “straight to video” films. He doesn’t seem to care anymore.
Blergh
Blergh - 7/29/2021, 3:24 AM
@LilJimmy - Even better, he only does close ups and has his double do all the wide shots. Willis only spends like 3 days on set
Blergh
Blergh - 7/29/2021, 3:26 AM
@LilJimmy - https://m.imdb.com/name/nm3388872/?ref_=m_ttfcd_cl18

This is the guy who does all of Willis actual work. Bruce does the bare minimum of what's required
bobevanz
bobevanz - 7/29/2021, 2:16 AM
Trash, think of something new you hacks. Die Hard died hard, with a vengeance. A Good Day was alright, but I refuse to acknowledge what transpired after
MUTO123
MUTO123 - 7/29/2021, 2:23 AM
@bobevanz - I sincerely hope that when you say “A Good Day is alright”, you’re saying the wrong title and thinking of the 4th one (Live Free) and not actually complimenting the 5th one.
kylo0607
kylo0607 - 7/29/2021, 2:39 AM
@bobevanz - I HOPE you meant Live Free and NOT A Good Day LMAO!
TheCoonII
TheCoonII - 7/29/2021, 2:51 AM
@MUTO123 - You mean the PG13 abomination
RageDriver2401
RageDriver2401 - 7/29/2021, 2:22 AM
Good. Studios need to stop harming old IPs in attempts to milk them. The last Rambo was pretty bad, Stallone seems bent on making another Rocky movie, A Good Day to Die Hard was also a pretty bland movie, wasn't a big fan of Bad Boys 3 either.

The only classics at this point I want to see more of are Rush Hour and Lethal Weapon, but only if they're willing to make good movies and not just hope that people will buy tickets to simply see those characters again regardless of the stories they're telling.
Shroombeast
Shroombeast - 7/29/2021, 2:37 AM
Probably for the best. I suppose there's a small chance that this might have actually turned out to be a great film, but I doubt it.
elgaz
elgaz - 7/29/2021, 2:44 AM
No matter how dedicated and hardworking and skilled actors are, there is almost always something lost when they try to revisit past glories at an older age. You could see it in the Die Hard sequels, the last Indiana Jones film, Bill & Ted Face the Music - they lose that youthful energy and vigour which really charged the earlier films. Rocky Balboa is one exception, but that's probably because Stallone wrote a story which was all about Rocky being older and the limitations/challenges he faced because of his age. Bruce Willis however also has the added problem of no longer seeming to give a single f**k about his career, and has spent the last few years looking mind numbingly bored whilst phoning in his performances over a crackly telephone line whilst he's distracted by something.
IcePyke
IcePyke - 7/29/2021, 2:53 AM
Okay.
mrbioshock1984
mrbioshock1984 - 7/29/2021, 2:57 AM
Rambo 4 and 5 was awesome! Felt like Punisher Max and unlike Willis Sly cares about the content!
mgeoff88
mgeoff88 - 7/29/2021, 3:13 AM
Hmmm… I was kind of looking forward to this. The idea of seeing John McClane in the past was intriguing.

Rebooting Die Hard is a terrible idea. No matter what they do, the reboot will never measure up to the original.

If they want to do something with Die Hard, do a movie based on the Die Hard: Year One comic series.
vegetaray
vegetaray - 7/29/2021, 3:14 AM
Thank. God.

This is THE prototype for the “Hollywood has no creativity” complaint…I mean who the hell pitched this as a good idea, AND who gave it the initial green light…
dracula
dracula - 7/29/2021, 3:18 AM
Really unless they could pull off a miracle and get the original director back, who cares.

1 and 3 were the best

2 and 4 were decent

5 was like a direct to video knock off
Chewtoy
Chewtoy - 7/29/2021, 4:12 AM
Just let the Die Hard franchise be over and rest peacefully. It was never really a concept that should have been a franchise anyway, as to do so you gradually turned the underdog Everyman of the original into an unkillable ultra badass.
bkmeijer2
bkmeijer2 - 7/29/2021, 4:23 AM
DudeGuy
DudeGuy - 7/29/2021, 4:35 AM
Good. Wasn’t in the mood.
Truoptimusprime
Truoptimusprime - 7/29/2021, 5:11 AM
Just make Die Hard in a nursing home. After John McClane starts having episodes of dementia his daughter places him the Sleep Easy nursing home. " The nurses keep shoving pills down my throat, I know they are trying to kill me"... "They are trying to kill all of us!" John fights orederlies, nurses, and therapists. He finally finds out that his doctor is Hans Grubers great grand daughter. 😆.
LilJimmy
LilJimmy - 7/29/2021, 5:15 AM
Making a prequel would have ruined the original Die Hard
marvel72
marvel72 - 7/29/2021, 5:49 AM
So it literally died hard.
THEKENDOMAN
THEKENDOMAN - 7/29/2021, 5:53 AM
Wow, is this news? Why was a prequel in the works in the first place? What was the plot going to be? Terrorists attack his high school, and he comes to save the day? Or is a shooter in the school playground killing all the teachers, and he comes to save the day?

Give me a [frick]ing break!
FearTheLiving
FearTheLiving - 7/29/2021, 5:56 AM
Honestly just keep the name and reboot it with a new character. Bruce Willis doesn't give a **** anymore and McClane's story is done and you can't have a prequel because the whole thing started with Die Hard.
Captainhulk1
Captainhulk1 - 7/29/2021, 6:18 AM
They already kind of, sort of have a Die Hard prequel. It's called The Detective from 1968, starring Frank Sinatra. The lead character's name was changed from Joe Leland to John McClane, because of a contract with Frank Sinatra. The Detective movie was based on a 1966 novel of the same name and Die Hard was based on the 1979 sequel novel Nothing Lasts Forever. https://thrillingdetective.com/2018/10/04/joe-leland-aka-john-mcclane/


Dredd97
Dredd97 - 7/29/2021, 6:35 AM
Thank God. This was a horrible idea to begin with. Not every classic movie needs a continuation or origin. Just let things be
1 2
View Recorder