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‘Die Hard With a Vengeance’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Van Lathan

June 24, 2025 · Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995) · Action · Adventure · Thriller · 2:11:10

IMDb ↗Letterboxd ↗

Categories

Most Rewatchable Scene

Bill Simmons▶ 32:50Opening scene with Simon Says game and the sign scene where John McClane meets Sam Jackson
Chris Ryan▶ 32:41Every scene up until the boat - essentially all scenes before the ending

Is There a Better Title?

Bill Simmons▶ 59:01Die Hard 3: Simon Says or Die Hard 3: The Other Gruber
Chris Ryan▶ 58:57Die Hard in New York
Van Lathan▶ 59:24Agrees the title was problematic and hurt his interest in seeing the movie, supports the Simon Says idea

What's Aged the Best

Bill Simmons▶ 1:04:35Hangovers in movies, the 'I think you better take this' phone trope, evil brothers seeking revenge, commandeering vehicles, and alcoholic hero cops who look like shit but rise to the occasion
Chris Ryan▶ 1:04:09The power dynamics between Zeus and McClane, hiding Simon like the shark in Jaws until minute 50, constant ticking clock storytelling mechanism, and the car chase with random passenger getting in cab
Van Lathan▶ 1:02:52The racial dynamics and power dynamics between McClane and Zeus, how the movie handles race directly rather than as subtext, and Zeus's character having a direct way of looking at things

Big Kahuna Burger Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:13:48aspirin

Great Shot Gordo Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:13:54Bombwit Tower exploding
Chris Ryan▶ 1:14:01The opening three or four shots of the sun coming up in New York City
Van Lathan▶ 1:14:12The guy from The Wire being torn in half/dragged with intestines everywhere

Butch's Girlfriend Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:16:46Zeus being involved in the last 40 minutes - he's a normal person who should go back to his store but instead becomes like a cop leading attacks
Chris Ryan▶ 1:16:13The finale/ending - the movie peaks in the first 113 minutes and can't top the subway car sequence, so they give up on the ending
Van Lathan▶ 1:18:23Holly references - tired of McClane being told to call his wife when he's trying to focus on the mission

What's Aged the Worst

Bill Simmons▶ 1:21:39The gold weight logistics being completely wrong (would need 480 dump trucks instead of what they showed) and the terrible ending of the movie that was a studio-mandated reshoot
Chris Ryan▶ 1:21:13The reputation of city services - how the movie portrayed sanitation workers, librarians, and firefighters as heroically willing to walk into dangerous situations, versus current public perception of slow response times and questioning the value of services like libraries

Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:27:55They blew it using the Simon Says gimmick for Die Hard 3 instead of making it a separate franchise, believes it would have worked better as a horror movie franchise like Saw
Chris Ryan▶ 1:26:40Die Hard 3 is the best Die Hard movie and is improved by not imperiling Holly, focusing more on McClane saving the city rather than personal stakes
Van Lathan▶ 1:27:20Die Hard 3 is his favorite Die Hard movie (though he clarifies it's not necessarily better than the original)

Casting What-Ifs

Bill Simmons▶ 1:29:59Sean Connery — Sean Connery was their first choice for Simon, but it wouldn't have worked - doesn't buy him as evil and him trying to do a German accent would be problematic
Chris Ryan▶ 1:30:24Sean Connery — Agrees Connery wouldn't work - notes the physical mismatch with the tank top and ripped physique required, questions if Connery has gone bad in films besides 70s movies
Van Lathan▶ 1:30:06Sean Connery — Agrees Sean Connery was considered but noted he didn't want to play such a role, questions if Sean Connery has ever gone bad in anything

Joey Pants Award

Bill Simmons▶ 1:34:34Joe Pantoliano — Joey Pantoliano as Walter Cobb - getting mad at McClane and calling him a drunk

Apex Mountain

Bill Simmons▶ 1:41:25Bruce Willis — Bruce Willis (yes, around 1995), Sam Jackson (no, maybe later around Star Wars 1999), Jeremy Irons (probably winning Oscar), Summer action movies, Wall Street school system, Gold Reserve Bond with Teller, Colleen Camp, Cruz over Hanks for John McClane sidekicks
Chris Ryan▶ 1:42:13Samuel L. Jackson — Sam Jackson around this Pulp Fiction/Die Hard area, Summer movies set during summer, Cruz as Simon Gruber alternative casting idea
Van Lathan▶ 1:44:22Samuel L. Jackson — Die Hard Sequels (yes), John McClane Sidekicks (definitely yes), Sam Jackson's peak difficult to pinpoint but somewhere in the 90s, Harlem as movie location (quickly dismissed)

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Bill Simmons▶ 1:49:06McLean should be covered in blood and gore from all the close-range shootings and explosions
Chris Ryan▶ 1:48:13How many of these tasks did Gruber reasonably expect McLean to complete and how did he know they were being completed?
Van Lathan▶ 1:49:53John McLean is essentially superhuman - he takes massive physical damage but water somehow rejuvenates him, making him like the character from Unbreakable

Picking Nits

Bill Simmons▶ 1:51:46The biggest nit is McLane surviving the tunnel drowning and Zeus coincidentally driving by to pick him up, plus Simon giving McLane the aspirin bottle with the address despite being a mastermind - like he wanted to get caught
Chris Ryan▶ 1:50:25The German henchmen are obviously fake when they arrive and don't look like they work in city services, and how did Simon expect to get away with dumpsters full of metal pieces instead of gold
Van Lathan▶ 1:50:18McLane doesn't even consider taking the $12 billion offer or tell anyone about it, and all the henchmen are 6'4" German dudes with crew cuts who obviously don't look like cops or Wall Street workers

Sequel/Prequel/Limited Series/Remake

Bill Simmons▶ 1:53:11Suggests prestige TV adaptation with original cast, mentions Die Hard had multiple sequels but was disappointed by Live Free or Die Hard
Van Lathan▶ 1:53:19Defends Live Free or Die Hard, thought Oliphant was good and it was pretty cool

Is This Movie Better With

Bill Simmons▶ 1:54:27Lists multiple options but settles on Simon Gruber as a mastermind who sees the whole city as a launching pad
Chris Ryan▶ 1:54:17Doris Burke — Doris Burke saying 'Auf Wiedersehen Aaron Gruber' (corrected to Simon Gruber by Bill)

Just One Oscar

Bill Simmons▶ 1:54:41John McTiernan — McTiernan for Best Director

Coach Finstock Life Lesson

Bill Simmons▶ 1:59:17Don't count out the divorced alcoholics in your life, they never know when they're gonna surprise you
Van Lathan▶ 1:59:03If we can beat racism, we can beat Europe - they work together, beat racism and then beat the Germans

Best Double Feature

Bill Simmons▶ 2:00:15Die Hard — Die Hard paired with Die Hard 3 (skipping Die Hard 2), or Under Siege paired with The Siege
Chris Ryan▶ 2:00:55Pulp Fiction — Mentions Pulp Fiction but gets cut off

Who Won the Movie

Bill Simmons▶ 2:01:38Samuel L. Jackson — Sam Jackson - Pulp Fiction no longer becomes a fluke, he can carry a major movie, and this sets up the rest of his career
Chris Ryan▶ 2:01:02Samuel L. Jackson — Sam Jackson - he's the breath of fresh air the franchise needed and gives the movie new life
Van Lathan▶ 2:01:34Bruce Willis — Willis - it's hard to beat the character of John McClane

Movies Referenced (77)

Die Hard (1988)

68 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Van Lathan▶ 2:07IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Pulp Fiction (1994)

17 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Van Lathan▶ 12:20IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Speed (1994)

11 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Van Lathan▶ 18:47IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Under Siege (1992)

8 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 25:20IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Angel Heart (1987)

6 mentions · Van Lathan, Bill Simmons▶ 2:02:49IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Marathon Man (1976)

6 mentions · Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons, Van Lathan▶ 34:00IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Captain America (1990)

5 mentions · Van Lathan, Bill Simmons▶ 52:34IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Phantom Thread (2017)

5 mentions · Van Lathan, Bill Simmons▶ 36:45IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Wild Things (1998)

5 mentions · Van Lathan, Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons▶ 2:04:07IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Batman Forever (1995)

4 mentions · Van Lathan, Bill Simmons▶ 29:37IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Lethal Weapon (1987)

4 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 14:16IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Medicine Man (1992)

4 mentions · Van Lathan, Bill Simmons▶ 28:10IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Directors Referenced (5)

John McTiernan

7 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Die Hard, Last Action Hero▶ 27:52IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Clint Eastwood

2 mentions · Van Lathan, Bill Simmons · Known for Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino, Unforgiven▶ 2:03:23IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Ben Affleck

1 mentions · Chris Ryan · Known for Argo, Gone Girl, The Town▶ 47:16IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Chris Corner

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for The Saint, Open Your Eyes▶ 50:16IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Chris Long

1 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 1:36:34IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Actors Referenced (52)

Simon Says

49 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Van Lathan · Known for Varsity Blues▶ 9:38IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Bruce Willis

25 mentions · Bill Simmons, Van Lathan, Chris Ryan · Known for Die Hard, Pulp Fiction▶ 2:06IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Laurence Fishburne

11 mentions · Bill Simmons, Van Lathan · Known for The Matrix, Contagion▶ 20:48IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Jeremy Irons

6 mentions · Bill Simmons, Van Lathan, Chris Ryan · Known for Dead Ringers, The Lion King, Assassin's Creed▶ 33:39IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Tom Hanks

6 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Cast Away, Big, Forrest Gump▶ 6:49IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Alec Baldwin

5 mentions · Bill Simmons, Van Lathan, Chris Ryan · Known for The Departed, It's Complicated, Glengarry Glen Ross▶ 28:08IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Joel Silver

5 mentions · Chris Ryan, Bill Simmons, Van Lathan · Known for The Nice Guys, The Matrix▶ 1:29:19IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Magic Johnson

5 mentions · Bill Simmons, Van Lathan · Known for Brown Sugar▶ 16:04IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Sean Connery

5 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Van Lathan · Known for Dr. No, The Untouchables, The Rock▶ 28:07IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Demi Moore

4 mentions · Bill Simmons, Van Lathan · Known for Striptease, Indecent Proposal▶ 24:49IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Dominique Wilkins

4 mentions · Bill Simmons, Van Lathan▶ 23:25IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Edie Falco

3 mentions · Chris Ryan▶ 1:11:39IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Writers Referenced (4)

Julie Siege

6 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan▶ 24:40IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Shane Black

3 mentions · Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan · Known for Predator, The Nice Guys, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang▶ 15:53IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Malcolm X

1 mentions · Van Lathan · Known for Malcolm X▶ 1:32:39IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Roger Ebert

1 mentions · Bill Simmons▶ 31:18IMDb ↗Lb ↗

Cinematographers Referenced (1)

Samuel Huxtable

1 mentions · Bill Simmons · Known for Heart of Stone▶ 2:05:54IMDb ↗Lb ↗