Macaulay Culkin explains why Die Hard isn't a Christmas movie amid long-standing debate
Christmas is only a matter of days away, and while we all await the joy that comes with the big day, a long-running debate has come to the forefront once more: Is Die Hard a Christmas film?
It's a discussion that divides households across the country, and despite the original movie dropping nearly 40 years ago, it's a debate that doesn't seem to be dying down anytime soon.
The story of the 1988 release takes place on Christmas, but the festive season doesn't really impact the plot at all, and thus begins the debate on whether or not the release can be considered a Christmas movie.
Die Hard centers around New York City policeman John McClane (Bruce Willis), who goes to visit his estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia) and their two daughters on Christmas Eve.
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The plot obviously takes a bit of a dark turn, though the not-so Christmasy events are set during the festive period. So, does that make Die Hard a Christmas film?
Well, according to Home Alone star Culkin, it does not.
“No, no it’s not. Don’t fight me!” he said during a recent interview with Mythical Kitchen. "It’s based around Christmas, but if it were also St. Patrick’s Day, it would still work. But you couldn’t do Home Alone on Memorial Day. It doesn’t work that way."
Referencing the impact he's had on festive films after starring as Kevin in Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Culkin added: "I’m the godfather of Christmas nowadays. My opinion has some sway in this argument."
While some fans continue to state Die Hard is indeed a Christmas movie, Willis, the movie's main protagonist, provided his view during his Comedy Central roast in 2018.
Getting straight to the point, the actor said: "Die Hard is not a Christmas movie. It's a Bruce Willis movie, so yippee-ki-yay to all you motherf**kers and good night!"
John McTiernan, the film's director, had a differing view, though, saying in a 2020 interview: "Joel Silver sent me the script three, four times. And it was about these horrible leftist terrorists that come into the sort of Valhalla of capitalism, Los Angeles, and they bring their guns and their evil ways, and they shoot up people just celebrating Christmas, terrible people, awful.
"And it was really about the stern face of authority stepping into put things right again, you know? And I kept saying to Joel, I don't want to make that."
He continued: "In fact, everybody, as they came to work on the movie, began to get, as I said, this idea of this movie as an escapee. And there was a joy in it. Because we were, we had changed the content.
"And that is how Die Hard became, we hadn't intended it to be a Christmas movie, but the joy that came from it is what turned it into a Christmas movie. And that's really the best I can tell you about it."
We're never all going to agree on this, are we?
Topics: Bruce Willis, Film and TV, Christmas
Callum Jones