Die Hard garnered much attention when it was released in the 80s, and has since become one of the most iconic entries in the action genre. Don't just do it Die Hard boasts blood-pumping action sequences and incredible performances, but it also has one of the coolest heroes of all time. Bruce Willis' John McClane subverted the decade's action hero archetype by being ordinary and flawed, surviving the horrors Hans Gruber brought to Nakatomi Plaza with sheer luck, determination and grit.
As influential as John McClane is, however, he's far from the only action hero who feels like an everyday person thrust into extraordinary circumstances. Some characters take that concept even further, relying less on combat skills and training and more on resilience, intelligence, and moral conviction. Whether escaping corrupt officials, changing the world, or making incredible sacrifices, these “everyday” action heroes surpass McClane by better proving that ordinary people can accomplish remarkable things.
Die Hard: What Made John McClane A Breath Of Fresh Air
In a decade dominated by muscle-bound supermen like Stallone and Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis' John McClane offered a relatable action hero for everyone.
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The Terminator had no chance against Sarah Connor
When the audience first meets Sarah Connor in the the terminator, she is about as regular as they come. She is a young waitress living an ordinary life in LA until she finds out that she is the target of a cybernetic assassin who has been sent back in time to kill her and her unborn child. Pursued relentlessly by Arnold Schwarzenegger's T-800, Sarah spends much of the film trying to survive, and each escape feels earned rather than inevitable.
McClane may be an off-duty cop, but he still has years of training and experience to fall back on to help him survive what's happening at Nakatomi Plaza. Sarah has none of these things, yet she adapts. Her resilience, intelligence and refusal to give up against impossible odds transform her from someone completely overwhelmed and out of her depth to a hardened survivor. She is truly capable of rewriting fate, even if it doesn't seem like it at first. Sarah's character arc is even more compelling than John McClane's victory in Die Hardand she quickly became a pop culture icon.
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Dr. Richard Kimble succeeds with even fewer skills in The Fugitive
The Fugitive mixes action sequences with a well-written mystery
IN The fugitive, Harrison Ford's Dr. Richard Kimble is a respected surgeon in Chicago whose life is destroyed when his wife is murdered and he is wrongly convicted of the crime and faces the death penalty despite the circumstantial evidence of the case. After surviving a spectacular crash on his way to prison, he escapes custody and goes on the run in an attempt to solve his wife's murder. Kimble runs into difficulties when he learns that a deputy US marshal is actively pursuing him. But while McClane pursues Hans Gruber and his team, Kimble has a much more difficult task: clear his name, avoid capture, solve his wife's murder, and survive.
What also makes Kimble an even stronger action hero than John McClane is how little he relies on confrontation. His greatest skills are his intelligence, compassion, and resourcefulness, and he uses all three to succeed. He even risks capture to save a young boy in a hospital, weaves together a complex conspiracy, and repeatedly outwits the authorities without resorting to violence. McClane is no doubt brave, but he's still an NYPD cop, while Kimble succeeds on nothing but his expertise, quick thinking, and sheer determination. His achievements feel even more remarkable than John McClane's.
8 Best One-Man Army Movies, Ranked
For audiences who want to see someone take on armies with just their two hands and their wits, these adrenaline-pumping movies are worth checking out.
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Theo Faron has a much greater impact on children of men
Theo's reluctance is even more obvious than John McClane's
Theo Faron begins the dystopian action film Children of men as the last person anyone would expect to save the world. Theo lives in a bleak Britain where humanity has suffered two decades of infertility and is on the brink of extinction. Theo is a former activist who has long since given up all belief that he can make a difference. Everything changes when he is tasked with bringing Kee, the only pregnant woman in the world, to the Human Project. Unlike other action heroes, Theo's stance throughout Children of men is purely defensive, and he constantly withdraws. He is not confident; he's scared, exhausted, and often overwhelmed, but he keeps going because he knows what's at stake.
During children of men, Theo faces ambushes, political unrest, military conflict and countless impossible choices, but he never stops fighting. Through sheer luck and the help of well-meaning people who see Kee's pregnancy as beautiful rather than something to exploit for political gain, he does everything in his power to protect Kee and help secure the future of humanity. While John McClane wowed the crowd when he saved a building and office workers Die HardTheo goes even further and protects all of humanity through hope and perseverance. His journey is even more meaningful, and because he doesn't have John McClane's police training, Theo is even more relatable to viewers.
