The three DIE HARD films have all been exceptional – in terms of action, character and plot. They have grossed almost three quarters of a billion dollars at the international box office, turning wise-cracking, deeply flawed New York (NYPD) detective, John McClane into an iconic action hero. Each film had a unique story and style, and each one had Bruce Willis as its star. Now Willis is back in DIE HARD 4.0 - with talented actor, Justin Long as his partner.
This time McClane is embroiled in a desperate attempt to save the US from a cyber terrorist plot. In DIE HARD 4.0 from Twentieth Century Fox, director Len Wiseman and Bruce Willis have made an innovative and contemporary action film. While it is full of amazing action with dramatic car chases, explosions and state of the art visual effects, the human drama is equally powerful. John McClane picks up Matt Farrell (Justin Long) for routine questioning. Farrell is a computer hacker who is suspected of involvement in terrorist activities. There is a shoot out and McClane saves Farrell’s life.
As it turns out, the seasoned cop discovers that the younger man is indispensable, because of his technical brilliance and computer skills and the two men team up in an attempt to save the United States from a fire sale – a systematic attack which could bring down the nation’s communication system and create utter chaos on a global level.
There is great chemistry between Willis as the legendary tough but vulnerable cop and Long, the naïve ‘uncool’ but clever computer hacker. McClane knows very little about the digital world and is relying on his young partner for his expertise. Farrell on the other hand, has no idea about self defence, how to shoot a gun or win a fight. The duo face formidably terrifying adversaries in Maggie Q and Timothy Olyphant.
For Justin Long, starring in DIE HARD 4.0 was the chance of a lifetime. A huge fan of Bruce Willis and all the DIE HARD films, he was thrilled to learn he had landed the coveted role. Long, 29, was born in Connecticut. His father James Long is a philosophy professor. He inherited a love of drama from his mother, Wendy Lesniak, an actress who has worked mostly in the theater.
Long always enjoyed performing as a child and attended the prestigious Vassar College where he appeared in several plays, before leaving to pursue an acting career.
His film credits include JEEPERS CREEPERS, DODGEBALL: A TRUE UNDERDOG STORY, CROSSROADS, GALAXY QUEST, HERBIE FULLY LOADED, RAISING GENIUS, ACCEPTED and THE BREAK-UP. His upcoming films include ONE PART SUGAR, THE SASQUATCH DUMPLING GANG, STRANGE WILDERNESS and PATRIOTVILLE.
With a gift for comedy and a sharp wit, Long is also a talented dramatic actor. He talked about DIE HARD 4.0 in the following interview, conducted in Los Angeles.
Q: What kind of guy are you at the start of the film?
A: “I’m a freelance hacker and I am very amoral. I get hired out like a mercenary to do jobs and I never really ask questions. They pay me to do my work and I crack security codes. I’ve cracked one that the bad guys needed to complete their plan, I am reclusive but brilliant and I get inadvertently involved in a nefarious plot to take over world. John McClane, Bruce Willis’s character comes to my apartment to pick me up and take me for routine questioning. At the same time, the bad guys are trying to kill me to cover their tracks and they intend to assassinate all the hackers who are involved in this plot. Bruce arrives - oddly enough at the exact time that they are trying to kill me, which is fortunate for me.”
Q: How much did you know about this technical field?
A: “I was not an expert before starting this film, but the screenwriter was in touch with an actual hacker who he would correspond with and I was always getting pointers from him about the technical details. I am terrible at math and my mind doesn’t work like that, so it was extremely difficult for me to even grasp what my lines meant. It was like a foreign language.”
What was the most difficult line?
A: “A mutating encryption algorithm. I would trip up over the very technical language a lot.”
Q: What is your on screen relationship with Bruce Willis?
A: “We have a great dynamic. He ends up becoming my protector, but he also needs my help to unravel this terrible plot, because he knows nothing about the modern world and the internet and I know nothing about being a man and using my fists and defending myself, so we have a symbiotic relationship. He’s the old school analog and I’m the technical, savvy geek. His daughter ends up getting kidnapped and then I end up getting kidnapped with her. There is some romance, but I don’t want to give anything away.”
Q: Is Farrell the quintessential computer geek?
A: “Well I guess he is nerdy, but more than that, he is hip and sarcastic, he gets the jokes, but he does not have experience with the ladies. He is holed up in his room the whole time in front of his computer screen and as a result he has no real life experience.”
Q: Were you a DIE HARD fan growing up?
A: “I grew up in a Catholic, conservative family so my parents were strict about what movies we watched. I loved DIE HARD, but I did not see the uncut version of the original DIE HARD until I was older. I remember when I saw the film on TV as a kid, I never understood what McClane was saying when he said that famous line …’yippee kayee mother ……’ Because they would cut out the curse words on TV so we never heard the word ‘f…… ‘. I just didn’t get that line. It really helps a lot when you add the ‘f’ word. But I really liked all the DIE HARD films.”
Q: Were you a big Bruce Willis fan?
A: “I was, when they called me about the film I thought they joking at first. I never even get auditions for movies like this and it was just a thrill to get to go and audition with Bruce. I honestly thought that it was just a one shot thing, that I would do the audition and that would be the end. I thought I had no chance. So I wasn’t nervous at all, I was actually quite excited to go in and meet him. My audition scene was very dynamic, my character was abrasive and there was a lot of shouting. I was so excited to be in the room with Bruce Willis and I fully expected to get the call a few days later saying: ‘they are going with …… ‘ whoever . There are so many good, young actors and I saw several guys I knew at the audition. I think I just have a very low opinion of myself. I just assumed they would hire somebody better than me.”
Q: How did you find Bruce Willis?
A: “He has a great presence, he is quiet and very cool and I remember thinking that first time, that he looked like an eagle, bald and in great shape. He was regal and just cool, but also down to earth. He said ‘how are you doing’ and I was disarmed by him from the start.”
Q: So when you got the job, how thrilling was it for you?
A: “It was a thrill. Bruce called me himself and I was so excited, I kept the message on the machine. He said ‘Justin Long – Bruce goddam Willis here, how the hell are you?’ he was so laid back and said he was glad we were working together, he said ‘I can’t wait’ and I shouted ‘that’s the coolest thing ever’, I couldn’t believe it and I played that message like a nerd for all my friends. I was such an idiot. At the same time I had been offered a role in a romantic comedy, playing opposite a romantic starlet, so I had two great offers. I chose DIE HARD because I never ever thought I’d get to do this kind of action movie with Bruce Willis. What a chance of a lifetime? He is so iconic.”
Q: Can you talk about the action in the film?
A: “ A lot of my involvement in the action meant guttural reactions to what was going on all around me. I didn’t do anything heroic. We will get shot at and Bruce would throw me behind something to save me. I have an arc as the film progresses, but during the journey I do become more of a man and pick up a gun. For most of the movie though, I am reacting in the way that anyone would react and I tried to put myself into Farrell’s situation. It was very difficult to relate to Farrell, because I have never been in a dangerous situation like that, I don’t know what it is like to be shot at, and I don’t know what it’s like to jump out of an exploding apartment. At the end I do get a shoot a guy, but he’s not a very important guy, he is henchman number four. But it was cool and I had been looking forward to it after months of being on the sidelines. We were doing the scene and I thought it would be funny to say ‘yabba dabba doo mother f….’ . I don’t know if they will use it though.”
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