Die Hard: First Impressions Last

How the simple and to-the-point character introduction in “Die Hard” elevated it from a mere standard action flick to an all-time classic.

Introducing characters in a story is difficult. As a storyteller, you have to introduce the characters to the audience in a way that they can relate to them. Even unlikeable characters.

We all have our favorite and memorable characters from the annals of film history. Characters that in some form or another made a lasting impression on us. Some made a grand entrance and others grew on you the more you got to know them.

This article focuses on the introductions. The scene or sequences where the characters were introduced to the audience in such a way that you instantly knew “this is going to be a good story.”

Since its premiere in 1988, “Die Hard” has become “The Perfect Christmas Movie”. It is arguably one of the best action movies of all time, but where it really excels is in the character introductions. So it’s only fitting that in the spirit of the holidays, we look at Die Hard as an example of good introductions of characters.

Meet John McClane

The first two minutes of Die Hard accomplishes something that very few movies do. It introduces the main hero and at the same time carefully drops some very important expositional details about him. It even manages to set up a sequence for later in the movie.

It’s a great opening scene, and it only lasts two pages in the screenplay and two minutes of screen time. It is as economical and to the point as it can get.

Read the pages from the screenplay below and notice how the scene is written. Notice how nothing is explored for too long. Almost everything is mentioned in passing. But notice that after it, you have a very good understanding of who John McClane is and where he’s going.

The first two pages of the screenplay

There you have it. In less than two pages of screenplay, screenwriter Steven E. De Souza successfully managed to cram a ton of information about John McClane into the story. And I bet you didn’t even notice it the first time you saw the movie. But in just two minutes, we gathered a lot of information about John McClane:

He is afraid of flying

He is a father, and he’s bringing a teddy bear for one of his kids

He is married (or as least not actively looking for women at the moment)

He is good looking

He is a policeman from New York with years of street experience

He wears a gun on the plane (this was 1988)

He has a sense of humor (“Trust me I’ve been doing it for eleven”)

They could have introduced McClane in a hundred other ways. They could have shown him in his natural milieu in New York as a tough street cop kicking ass and taking names — “You’ve got to ask yourself one question. Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?”. But they did not. They showed him as a vulnerable husband that’s scared of flying and comes to visit his estranged family.

That is a novel way of introducing your main character in an action movie.

Imagine for a moment what a different story Die Hard would have been if they had opted to introduce John McClane as some Dirty Harry clone. Even if the rest of the movie had remained unchanged, framing McClane like this would have completely shifted our feelings for him and I dare to claim it would have made the story far less interesting.

And the majority of the introduction wasn’t even about McClane and who he is. It was mostly about his fear of flying and the salesman sitting next to him giving him advice on how to handle jet lag. This conversation with the salesman might seem strange or even off-beat funny at first, but it seamlessly sets up why McClane later in the movie is running around in the offices of Nakatomi Plaza barefoot.

Now watch how the entire scene made it into the movie. There are a few minor changes between the screenplay and what ended up on the screen, but the setup, structure, and dialogue are virtually unchanged.