Die Hard Is Back
Die Hard is one of the absolute classics of the action genre, and an annual breath of fresh air in the pathos-heavy pantheon of classic Christmas movies. Bruce Willis' scruffy John McClane was a welcome everyman presence in the 1980s action movie scene dominated by the likes of Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the inimitable Alan Rickman provided skillful fire support as the iconic villain, Hans Gruber.
As esteemed action films tend to do, Die Hard spawned a whole host of movies that ripped it off, as well as a number of sequels of its own. We're currently five movies deep in the Die Hard franchise, and after the events at Nakatomi Plaza, Mr. McClane has begrudgingly saved airports, cities, and even countries. It looks like he's not done yet, either. Willis' daughter, Rumer, recently dropped a cryptic Die Hard message that seemed to indicate that Die Hard would return on October 18, 2020.
Well, guess what? She wasn't kidding. John McClane's surprise comeback actually happened, and just like that, Die Hard is back ... in a way.
John McClane is back ... to buy some car batteries
In this day and age, it's incredibly hard to shoot a high-profile movie without anyone noticing. As such, it's no surprise that Bruce Willis' return to his most famous role isn't a full-length film. In fact, "DieHard is back" (note spelling) is actually not a new installment in the franchise at all. It's a two-minute commercial for the aptly-titled DieHard car batteries, which sees Willis' John McClane attempt to get some car batteries while getting in a conflict with an old enemy.
Over the course of the 120 action-packed seconds, we see McClane head toward an Advanced Auto Parts store in order to pick up a new battery for his car, but the hacker from the original Die Hard, Theo (Clarence Gilyard), confronts him with a gang of heavies. The ensuing battle features all the vent-crawling, gunshots and explosions your nostalgia tooth craves for. As the action turns into a car chase scene, we even see the welcome return of McClane's limo-driving pal, Argyle (De'voreaux White). Yes, of course we hear "Ode to Joy." Yes, of course we hear the famous "Yippee Ki-Yay" line. However, as a fun little twist, it's actually Argyle who says it, while McClane annoyedly cuts him off before he gets to the sweary part to complain about the catchphrase theft.
All in all, it's a pretty awesome way to spend two minutes. Granted, it may not be a new Die Hard film, but hey — it's always fun to revisit the beats of one of the finest action movies ever made.