Bruce Willis

Walter Bruce Willis, (born March 19, 1955), better known as Bruce Willis, is an American actor and producer. His career began in television in the 1980s and has continued both in television and film since, including comedic, dramatic, and action roles. He is well known for the role of John McClane in the Die Hard series, which were mostly critical and uniformly financial successes. He has also appeared in over sixty films, including box office successes like Pulp Fiction, Sin City, 12 Monkeys, The Fifth Element, Armageddon, and The Sixth Sense.

Motion pictures featuring Willis have grossed US$ 2.55 to 3.05 billion at North American box offices, making him the seventh highest-grossing actor in a leading role, and ninth highest including supporting roles.Willis was married to actress Demi Moore and they had three daughters before their divorce in 2000 after thirteen years of marriage. He is a two-time Emmy Award-winning, Golden Globe Award-winning, and four-time Saturn Award-nominated actor.

Early life

Willis was born in Idar-Oberstein, West Germany, the son of a Kassel-born German, Marlene, who worked in a bank, and David Willis, an American soldier. Willis is the eldest of four children: he has a sister, Florence, and a brother, David. His brother Robert died of pancreatic cancer in 2001, aged 42. After being discharged from the military in 1957, Willis's father took his family back to Penns Grove, New Jersey, where he worked as a welder and factory worker. His parents separated in 1972, while Willis was in his teens.Willis attended Penns Grove High School in his hometown, where he encountered issues with a stutter. He was nicknamed Buck-Buck by his schoolmates. Finding it easy to express himself on stage and losing his stutter in the process, Willis began performing on stage and his high school activities were marked by such things as the drama club and student council president.

After high school, Willis took a job as a security guard at the Salem Nuclear Power Plant and also transported work crews at the DuPont Chambers Works factory in Deepwater, New Jersey. He quit after a colleague was killed on the job, and became a regular at several bars.

After a stint as a private investigator (a role he would play in the television series Moonlighting as well as in the 1991 film, The Last Boy Scout), Willis returned to acting. He enrolled in the drama program at Montclair State University, where he was cast in the class production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Willis left school in his junior year and moved to New York City.

Willis returned to the bar scene, only this time for a part-time job at the West Bank Cafe in New York City's Manhattan Plaza. After multiple auditions, Willis made his theater debut in the off-Broadway production of Heaven and Earth. He gained more experience and exposure in Fool for Love, and in a Levi's commercial.

Career

Early career

Willis at the 61st Academy Awards in 1989.

Willis left New York City and headed to California to audition for several television shows. In 1984, he appeared in an episode of the (TV series) Miami Vice, titled "No Exit." He auditioned for the role of David Addison Jr. of the television series Moonlighting (1985–89), while competing against 3,000 other actors for the position.The starring role, opposite Cybill Shepherd, helped to establish him as a comedic actor, with the show lasting five seasons. During the height of the show's success, beverage maker Seagram hired Willis as the pitchman for their Golden Wine Cooler products. The advertising campaign paid the rising star between $5–7 million over two years. In spite of that, Willis chose not to renew his contract with the company when he decided to stop drinking alcohol in 1988.

One of his first major film roles was in the 1987 Blake Edwards film Blind Date with Kim Basinger and John Larroquette. Edwards would cast him again to play the real-life cowboy actor Tom Mix in Sunset. However, it was his then-unexpected turn in the film Die Hard that catapulted him to fame. He performed most of his own stunts in the film, and the film grossed $138,708,852 worldwide. Following his success with Die Hard, he had a supporting role in the drama In Country as Vietnam veteran Emmett Smith and also provided the voice for a talking baby in Look Who's Talking, as well as its sequel Look Who's Talking Too.

1980s and 1990s

In the late-1980s, Willis enjoyed moderate success as a recording artist, recording an album of pop-blues titled The Return of Bruno, which included the hit single "Respect Yourself", promoted by a Spinal Tap-like rockumentary parody featuring scenes of him performing at famous events including Woodstock. Follow-up recordings were not as successful, though Willis has returned to the recording studio several times. In the early 1990s, Willis's career suffered a moderate slump starring in flops such as The Bonfire of the Vanities, Striking Distance, and a film he co-wrote titled Hudson Hawk, among others. He starred in a leading role in the highly sexualized thriller Color of Night (1994), which was very poorly received by critics, but has become popular on video. However, in 1994, he had a supporting role in Quentin Tarantino's acclaimed Pulp Fiction, which gave a new boost to his career. In 1996, he was the executive producer of the cartoon Bruno the Kid which featured a CGI representation of himself.

He went on to play the lead roles in Twelve Monkeys (1995) and The Fifth Element (1997). However, by the end of the 1990s, his career had fallen into another slump with critically panned films like The Jackal, Mercury Rising, and Breakfast of Champions, saved only by the success of the Michael Bay-directed Armageddon which was the highest grossing film of 1998 worldwide. The same year his voice and likeness were featured in the PlayStation video game Apocalypse. In 1999, Willis then went on to the starring role in M. Night Shyamalan's film, The Sixth Sense. The film was both a commercial and critical success and helped to increase interest in his acting career.

2000s

In 2000, Willis won an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his work on Friends (in which he played the father of Ross Geller's much-younger girlfriend). He was also nominated for a 2001 American Comedy Award (in the Funniest Male Guest Appearance in a TV Series category) for his work on Friends. Willis was originally cast as Terry Benedict in Ocean's Eleven (2001) but dropped out to work on recording an album. In Ocean's Twelve (2004), he makes a cameo appearance as himself. In 2007, he appeared in the Planet Terror half of the double feature Grindhouse as the villain, a mutant soldier. This marks Willis's second collaboration with director Robert Rodriguez, following Sin City.

Willis at the German premiere of Over the Hedge on June 28, 2006.

Willis has appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman several times throughout his career. He filled in for an ill David Letterman on his show February 26, 2003, when he was supposed to be a guest. On many of his appearances on the show, Willis stages elaborate jokes, such as wearing a day-glo orange suit in honor of the Central Park gates, having one side of his face made up with simulated buckshot wounds after the Harry Whittington shooting, or trying to break a record (parody of David Blaine) of staying underwater for only twenty seconds.

On April 12, 2007, he appeared again, this time wearing a Sanjaya Malakar wig. His most recent appearance was on June 25, 2007 when he appeared wearing a mini-turbine strapped to his head to accompany a joke about his own fictional documentary titled An Unappealing Hunch (a wordplay of An Inconvenient Truth). Willis also appeared on Japanese Subaru Legacy television commercials. Tying in with this, Subaru did a limited run of Legacys, badged "Subaru Legacy Touring Bruce", in honor of Willis.

Willis has appeared in four movies with Samuel L. Jackson (National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1, Pulp Fiction, Die Hard with a Vengeance, and Unbreakable) and both actors were slated to work together in Black Water Transit, before dropping out. Willis also worked with his eldest daughter, Rumer, in the 2005 film Hostage. In 2007, he appeared in the thriller Perfect Stranger, opposite Halle Berry, the crime/drama film Alpha Dog, opposite Sharon Stone, and marked his return to the role of John McClane in Live Free or Die Hard. His most recent roles were in the films What Just Happened and Surrogates, based on the comic book of the same name.

Willis was slated to play U.S. Army general William R. Peers in director Oliver Stone's Pinkville, a drama about the investigation of the 1968 My Lai Massacre However, due to the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike, the film was cancelled.

Willis appeared on the 2008 Blues Traveler album North Hollywood Shootout, giving a spoken word performance over an instrumental blues-rock jam on the track "Free Willis (Ruminations from Behind Uncle Bob's Machine Shop)". In early 2009, he appeared in an advertising campaign to publicize the insurance company Norwich Union's change of name to Aviva.

Willis starred with Tracy Morgan in the comedy Cop Out, directed by Kevin Smith and about two police detectives investigating the theft of a baseball card. The film was released in February 2010.

Willis appeared in the music video for the song "Stylo" by Gorillaz.

Upcoming films

Willis's future projects include several films that will debut in 2010. He is set for a cameo with former Planet Hollywood co-owners and '80s action stars Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 2010 film The Expendables. The film, also written and directed by Stallone, will feature the three action stars on screen together for the first time. The trio filmed their scene in an empty church on October 24, 2009.

Willis will portray Frank Moses in Red, an adaption of the comic book mini-series of the same name. The film is scheduled for worldwide release on October 22, 2010.

Willis will star in the movie adaptation of the video game Kane & Lynch: Dead Men.

On May 5, 2010 it was announced that Die Hard 5 would be made and that Willis was on board to reprise his most famous role of John McClaine for a fifth time.

Personal life

Marriages and family

At the premiere for the film Stakeout, Willis met actress Demi Moore, who was dating actor Emilio Estevez at the time. Willis married Moore on November 21, 1987 and had three daughters: Rumer Willis (b. August 16, 1988), Scout LaRue Willis (b. July 20, 1991) and Tallulah Belle Willis (b. February 3, 1994) before the couple divorced on October 18, 2000. The couple gave no public reason for their breakup. Regarding the divorce, Willis stated, "I felt I had failed as a father and a husband by not being able to make it work." He credited actor Will Smith for helping him cope with the situation. After their breakup, rumors persisted that the couple planned to re-marry, until Moore married the actor Ashton Kutcher. Willis has maintained a close relationship with both Moore and Kutcher, even attending their wedding. Willis and Moore currently share custody of their daughters.

Since the divorce he has dated models Maria Bravo Rosado and Emily Sandberg; he was engaged to Brooke Burns until they broke up in 2004 after ten months together. He married Emma Heming in Turks and Caicos on March 21, 2009; guests included his three daughters, Moore, and Kutcher. The ceremony was not legally binding, so the couple wed again in a civil ceremony in Beverly Hills six days later. Willis has expressed interest in having more children.

Religion

Bruce Willis was, at one point, Lutheran (specifically Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod), but no longer practices, after clarifying in a July 1998 interview with George magazine:

“ Organized religions in general, in my opinion, are dying forms", he says. "They were all very important when we didn't know why the sun moved, why weather changed, why hurricanes occurred, or volcanoes happened", he continues. "Modern religion is the end trail of modern mythology. But there are people who interpret the Bible literally. Literally! I choose not to believe that's the way. And that's what makes America cool, you know? ”

Business interests

Willis owns property in Los Angeles, rents an apartment in the Trump Tower in New York City,[39] and Trump Place, as well as a home in Malibu, California, a ranch in Montana, a beach home on Parrot Cay in Turks and Caicos, and multiple properties in Sun Valley, Idaho.

Willis owns his own motion picture production company called Cheyenne Enterprises, which he started with his business partner Arnold Rifkin in 2000. He also owns several small businesses in Hailey, Idaho, including The Mint Bar and The Liberty Theater and is a co-founder of Planet Hollywood, with actors Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone.In 2009 Willis signed a contract to become the international face of Belvedere SA's Sobieski vodka in exchange for 3.3% ownership in the company.

Other interests

Willis, an avid New Jersey Nets fan, made controversial comments on April 29, 2007 during a live broadcast of a Nets home playoff game on TSN by saying a catch phrase from his Die Hard films, "Yippee-Ki-Yay, Motherfucker", at the end of the interview. Reacting to the backlash, he later blamed his actions on jet lag, stating: "Sometimes I overestimate my ability to function under duress with less than enough sleep".

On May 5, 2007, someone using the screen name "Walter_B" started posting detailed responses onto Ain't it Cool News, where people were discussing the fact that Live Free or Die Hard received a PG-13 rating, instead of an R rating like the earlier three Die Hard films.The responses included detailed information on Live Free or Die Hard, which was yet to be released; the theme of the Die Hard film series, direct criticisms of other film crews and casts, and many film trivia answers. Many people were skeptical that "Walter_B" was indeed Willis, but on May 9, Willis revealed his identity on a video chat session (using iChat).

Political views

In 1988, he and Moore actively campaigned for Massachusetts Governor Michael S. Dukakis's Presidential bid. Four years later, he supported President George H.W. Bush for reelection and he was a vocal critic of Bill Clinton. However, in 1996, he declined to endorse Clinton's Republican opponent Bob Dole, because Dole had criticized Moore for her role in the film Striptease. Willis was an invited speaker at the 2000 Republican National Convention, and actively supported George W. Bush that year. He did not make any contributions or public endorsements in the 2008 presidential campaign. In several June 2007 interviews, he declared that he still maintains some Republican ideologies.

In 2006, he proposed that the United States should invade Colombia, in order to end the drug trafficking. In several interviews Willis has said that he supports large salaries for teachers and police officers, and says that he is disappointed in the United States' foster care and treatment of Native Americans. Willis also stated that he is a big supporter of gun rights:

"Everyone has a right to bear arms. If you take guns away from legal gun owners, then the only people who have guns are the bad guys." Even a pacifist, he insists, would get violent if someone were trying to kill him. "You would fight for your life."

Willis has criticized the religious right and its influence on the Republican party. In February 2006, Willis appeared in Manhattan to talk about 16 Blocks with reporters. One reporter attempted to ask Willis about his opinion on current events, but was interrupted by Willis in mid-sentence:

“ I'm sick of answering this fucking question. I'm a Republican only as far as I want a smaller government, I want less government intrusion. I want them to stop shitting on my money and your money and tax dollars that we give 50 percent of... every year. I want them to be fiscally responsible and I want these goddamn lobbyists out of Washington. Do that and I'll say I'm a Republican... I hate the government, OK? I'm apolitical. Write that down. I'm not a Republican. ”

Willis's name was in an advertisement in the Los Angeles Times on August 17, 2006, that condemned Hamas and Hezbollah and supported Israel in the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict.

Military interests

Willis meeting members of the U.S. Navy on July 25, 2002.

Throughout his film career, Willis has depicted several military characters in films such as The Siege, Hart's War, Tears of the Sun, and Grindhouse. Growing up in a military family, Willis has publicly sold Girl Scout cookies for the United States armed forces. In 2002, Willis's youngest daughter, Tallulah, suggested that he purchase Girl Scout cookies to send to troops. Willis purchased 12,000 boxes of cookies, and they were distributed to sailors aboard USS John F. Kennedy and other troops stationed throughout the Middle East at the time. In 2003, Willis visited Iraq as part of the USO tour, singing to the troops with his band, The Accelerators. Willis considered joining the military to help fight the second Iraq war, but was deterred by his age. It was believed he offered US$1 million to any non combatant who turns in terrorist leaders Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, or Abu Musab al-Zarqawi; in the June 2007 issue of Vanity Fair, however, he clarified that the statement was made hypothetically and not meant to be taken literally. Willis has also criticized the media for its coverage of the war, complaining that the press were more likely to focus on the negative aspects of the war:

“ I went to Iraq because what I saw when I was over there was soldiers — young kids for the most part — helping people in Iraq; helping getting the power turned back on, helping get hospitals open, helping get the water turned back on and you don't hear any of that on the news. You hear, 'X number of people were killed today,' which I think does a huge disservice. It's like spitting on these young men and women who are over there fighting to help this country. ”

Willis stated in 2005 that he wanted to "make a pro-war film in which American soldiers will be depicted as brave fighters for freedom and democracy." The film would follow members of Deuce Four, the 1st Battalion, 24th Infantry, who spent considerable time in Mosul and were decorated heavily for it. The film is to be based on the writings of blogger Michael Yon, a former United States Army Special Forces soldier who was embedded with Deuce Four and sent regular dispatches about their activities. Willis described the plot of the film as "these guys who do what they are asked for very little money to defend and fight for what they consider to be freedom."

[edit]Cultural references

In 1996, Roger Director, a writer and producer from Moonlighting wrote a roman à clef on Willis titled A Place to Fall.Cybill Shepherd wrote in her 2000 autobiography, Cybill Disobedience, that Willis was angry at Director, because the character was written as a "neurotic, petulant actor."

In 1998, Willis participated in Apocalypse, a PlayStation video game. The game was originally announced to feature Willis as a sidekick, not as the main character. The company reworked the game using Willis's likeness and voice and changed the game to use him as the main character.

Filmography

Film

Year Film Role Notes

1980 The First Deadly Sin Man Entering Diner (uncredited)

1982 The Verdict Courtroom Observer (uncredited)

1985 A Guru Comes Extra (uncredited)

1987 Blind Date Walter Davis

1988 The Return of Bruno Bruno Radolini

Sunset Tom Mix

Die Hard John McClane

1989 That's Adequate Himself Cameo

In Country Emmett Smith Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture

Look Who's Talking Mikey Voice

1990 Die Hard 2 John McClane

Look Who's Talking Too Mikey Voice

The Bonfire of the Vanities Peter Fallow

1991 Mortal Thoughts James Urbanski

Hudson Hawk Eddie 'Hudson Hawk' Hawkins Co-writer plot and theme music

Billy Bathgate Bo Weinberg

The Last Boy Scout Joseph Cornelius 'Joe' Hallenbeck

1992 The Player Himself

Death Becomes Her Dr. Ernest Menville Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Actor

1993 National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1 John McClane (uncredited)

Striking Distance Tom 'Tommy' Hardy

1994 North Narrator

Color of Night Dr. Bill Capa

Pulp Fiction Butch Coolidge Nominated — Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor

Nobody's Fool Carl Roebuck

1995 Die Hard with a Vengeance John McClane

Four Rooms Leo (uncredited)

Twelve Monkeys James Cole Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Actor

1996 Last Man Standing John Smith

Beavis and Butt-Head Do America Muddy Grimes

1997 The Fifth Element Korben Dallas

The Jackal The Jackal

1998 Mercury Rising Art Jeffries

Armageddon Harry S. Stamper Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Actor

The Siege Major General William Devereaux

1999 "Franky Goes to Hollywood" Himself Short subject

Breakfast of Champions Dwayne Hoover

The Sixth Sense Dr. Malcolm Crowe Nominated — Saturn Award for Best Actor

The Story of Us Ben Jordan

2000 The Whole Nine Yards Jimmy "The Tulip" Tudeski

Disney's The Kid Russell 'Russ' Duritz

Unbreakable David Dunn

2001 Bandits Joe Blake

2002 Hart's War Col. William A. McNamara

Grand Champion Mr. Blandford

2003 Tears of the Sun Lieutenant A.K. Waters

Rugrats Go Wild Spike Voice

Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle William Rose Bailey

2004 The Whole Ten Yards Jimmy "The Tulip" Tudeski

Ocean's Twelve Himself

2005 Hostage Jeff Talley Also co-producer

Sin City John Hartigan

2006 Alpha Dog Sonny Truelove

16 Blocks Jack Mosley Also producer

Fast Food Nation Harry Rydell

Lucky Number Slevin Mr. Goodkat

Over The Hedge RJ Voice

2007 The Astronaut Farmer Colonel Doug Masterson (uncredited)

Perfect Stranger Harrison Hill

Grindhouse Lt. Muldoon

Nancy Drew Himself

Live Free or Die Hard John McClane Also producer

2008 What Just Happened Himself

Assassination of a High School President Principal Kirkpatrick

2009 Surrogates Agent Tom Greer

2010 Cop Out Jimmy Monroe

The Expendables Mr. Church Post production

Red Frank Moses Filming

The Last Full Measure In production