Where is the Die Hard cast now? Directed by John McTiernan – the genius filmmaker behind Predator – Die Hard tells the story of John McClane (Bruce Willis) as he tries to reunite with his estranged wife Holly (Bonnie Bedelia) on Christmas Eve. Oh, and terrorists invade as well.
Led by the charming but menacing Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) there’s more to these supposed freedom fighters than meets the eye, and it soon becomes clear they have an interest in whatever’s in the Nakatomi Plaza vault. Luckily John’s a New York City police officer and it’s not long before he turns the tables on the dastardly invaders.
Still, it’s been 33 years since one of the best action movies ever came out, and you may be wondering where the Die Hard cast is now. Well, wonder no more! We’ve done some digging into the cast’s movements. Some went on to become triple agents in a wizarding world war, others ended up on the straight-to-video movie beat, who’s who? Well, read on to find out…
The Die Hard cast list:
- De’voreaux White – Argyle
- Hart Bochner – Harry Ellis
- William Atherton – Richard Thornburg
- Reginald VelJohnson – Al Powel
- Bonnie Bedelia – Holly Gennero-McClane
- Alan Rickman – Hans Gruber
- Bruce Willis – John McClane
De’voreaux White – Argyle
The cocksure limo driver Argyle would be De’voreaux White’s most famous role but Die Hard was far from White’s only film credit. White appeared in the 1988 Gene Hackman picture Split Decisions as well as the 1992 film Trespass.
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He also played Aristotle McKenzie on the TV series Head of the Class between 1989-1991. His last credit saw him reprise the role of Argyle for the short Die Hard is Back, an advert for batteries.
Hart Bochner – Harry Ellis
Hart Bochner played the sleazy cocaine-addled Nakatomi executive Harry Ellis. Ellis, of course, arrogantly thought he could bring the siege of Nakatomi Plaza to an end by trying to negotiate with Hans Gruber. That quite literally blew up in his face, but the man who brought Ellis to life continued working in TV and film.
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After being shot by Rickman, he appeared in series like Grey’s Anatomy, Criminal Minds, and Scandal. His film credits include The Innocent, Batman: The Mask of the Phantasm, and the Carrie remake.
William Atherton – Richard Thornburg
Previously having played the dickless Walter Peck in Ghostbusters, William Atherton was no stranger to playing arseholes, but Richard Thornburg was something else. An unscrupulous reporter who’ll do anything to get a scoop, Thornburg is the one who accidentally reveals that Holly Gennero is, in fact, John McClane’s wife.
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Atherton would reprise the role of Thornburg in Die Hard 2 just two years after Die Hard, and his career’s gone from strength to strength since. Notable movie credits include The Pelican Brief, The Last Samurai, and Mad City. He’s also appeared on an impressive number of TV series, including Desperate Housewives, Law and Order, The Equalizer, Castle, and Lost.
Despite being harassed most of his adult life for being the man who brought down the Ghostbusters in 2009, Atherton made peace with the role of Walter Peck and reprised the character for the Ghostbusters videogame.
Reginald VelJohnson – Al Powell
Reginald VelJohnson played Al Powell, the LAPD officer who was unlucky enough to answer John McClane’s distress call. Bonding with McClane through the course of the film, Al becomes John’s confidant and his eyes and ears outside of Nakatomi Plaza.
Following the success of Die Hard, VelJohnson would continue to work in film, reprising the role of Al in Die Hard 2. His most famous role outside of Powell is probably Detective Sutton in Turner and Hooch, which he starred in opposite Tom Hanks.
VelJohnson’s also had an illustrious career in television playing Carl Winslow on the sitcom Family Matters from 1989 to 1998 and most recently appearing on the animated series Invincible. In 2021 he reprised the role of Detective Sutton, now Mayor Sutton, for the Disney Plus Turner and Hooch TV series.
Bonnie Bedelia – Holly Gennero-McClane
Holly Gennero is an ambitious businesswoman and the wife of John McClane. When you stop and think about it, Holly’s the real hero of the story, as she’s the one who invited John to Nakatomi Plaza, but that’s an argument for another day. Following Die Hard, Bonnie Bedelia would reprise the role of Holly in Die Hard 2, but she wouldn’t return for 3, 4, or 5, not that she needed the work.
Bedelia continued to work in film and TV, appearing in films like Stephen King’s Needful Things and Ari Aster’s short film Munchausen. It was on TV, however, where she enjoyed the most success. Between 2001-2004 Bedelia played Captain Kate McCafferty in the Lifetime drama series The Division and appeared as a series regular in Parenthood from 2010-2015.
Alan Rickman – Hans Gruber
Suave, charismatic, and ruthless, Hans Gruber is one of the finest villains to ever grace the silver screen. An exceptional thief and criminal mastermind, Hans came within inches of stealing not just $640 million in negotiable bearer bonds but also the whole damn film thanks to Alan Rickman’s peerless performance.
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While Hans would be Rickman’s first cinematic role, it wouldn’t be his last. Over the years, he’d play the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Colonel Brandon in Sense and Sensibility, Metatron in Kevin Smith’s Dogma, and the fabulously bitter Alexander Dane in Galaxy Quest.
Rickman will probably be best remembered, though, for the role of the sneering Severus Snape in the Harry Potter movies. Unfortunately, in August 2015, Rickman was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and he died just a few months later in January 2016. Friends and fans paid tribute to the great actor remembering him for his kindness, generosity, and incredible talent. We’ll remember him, always.
Bruce Willis – John McClane
Die Hard’s leading man John McClane was cut from a different cloth from other ‘80s action stars. Far more vulnerable than the characters Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger were playing, Bruce Willis made John an everyman. He wasn’t a super-soldier gunning through bad guys like they were nothing. John was an ordinary guy doing extraordinary things.
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John McClane launched Willis’s career into the stratosphere. As surprising as it sounds, Willis was known as a comedic actor before Die Hard, but things quickly changed. Willis would reprise the role of McClane in four more Die. During the ‘90s, he was one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, appearing in Pulp Fiction, 12 Monkeys, The Fifth Element, Armageddon, and M. Night Shyamalan’s Sixth Sense.
In the 2010s, while there were still hits like Unbreakable, Looper, and The Expendables, he began appearing in straight-to-DVD films that were poorly received by critics. Still, at the time of writing, his movies have raked in $5 billion worldwide, making him one of the highest-grossing actors in the world, so who are we to judge?
Sadly, Willis was diagnosed with aphasia, his family announced in 2023. We wish him all the best.
It’s no exaggeration to say that Die Hard is one of the best movies of all time, but if you’re looking for something fresher, check out our guide to all the new movies coming your way this year. If you are a gamer, see the best Christmas games, the best games to play over Christmas and the best Minecraft Christmas mods, skins, and seeds.