In honor of the actor’s birthday, we’ve got a guide to the best Bruce Willis movies
Actor Bruce Willis is known for his smirk, his swagger and his string of very quotable action films. Though his roles range from space cop to aging secret agent, he’s always the tough guy with the quippy lines. He started as an Off-Broadway actor, but after his stint on Moonlighting in the 1980s, he was the go-to guy for blue collar heroes. Willis has won two Emmy Awards, one for his appearance as Rachel Gellar’s (Jennifer Aniston) much older boyfriend on the NBC sitcom Friends, two Golden Globe awards and was nominated for a Saturn Award a whopping four times. He also had a few flops like Hudson Hawk, which he also wrote. Then there was that Seagram’s Golden Wine Cooler ad that you just have to look up on YouTube. Trust us. It will be worth it. He sings, you guys. Willis turns 61 on March 19. Happy birthday Bruce!
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: Moonlighting (1985-1989)
Willis’ first breakout role was on the ABC TV series Moonlighting opposite Cybil Shepherd. He played David Addison Jr., a role which won him an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy. Addison was smarmy yet charming as the lead detective at the City of Angels Detective Agency. The chemistry between he and Shepherd’s Maddie Hayes was palpable, but when the show finally hooked them up in a glass table-shattering, swear word-filled coupling, the show tanked. It was one of the earliest examples of happy couples ending shows.
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: Die Hard (1988)
1988’s Die Hard is probably one of Willis’ best-known roles, which he reprised in Die Hard 2 (1990), Die Hard With a Vengeance (1995), Live Free or Die Hard (2007) and A Good Day to Die Hard (2013). Willis played police officer John McClane, who takes down terrorists like Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) in a pretty spectacular manner. His line, “Yippee ki yay m***** f*****” has become one of the most quoted lines of any film he’s ever been in. Will 20th Century Fox make a sixth film? It certainly looks that way.
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: Pulp Fiction (1994)
In Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, Willis plays a prizefighter named Butch Coolidge in the segment “The Gold Watch.” He intentionally loses a boxing match because of a deal he makes with Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames). Things don’t go as planned for Marsellus when Butch kills his opponent and takes the money. The end of the segment is definitely memorable and involves a guy in a bondage suit. Trust us, if you haven’t seen it, there is really no way to describe it.
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: 12 Monkeys (1995)
In 12 Monkeys, Willis plays James Cole, a convict in the year 2027 who will receive a pardon if he travels back in time to 1996 when a virus forced humans to live underground and stop it. He accidentally ends up in 1990 and sent to a mental hospital. There he meets Jeffrey Goines (Brad Pitt) who tries to help him break out.
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: The Fifth Element (1997)
In this classic sci-fi film set in the 23rd century, Willis tries to once again save the Earth as Korben Dallas, a taxicab driver and former special forces major. When a mysterious woman named Leeloo (Milla Jovovich) in an outfit repeatedly cosplayed at conventions, falls into his cab, he embarks on a journey to retrieve four very special stones to help defend the planet. If you’ve ever heard anyone refer to “Multipass,” this is the movie it’s from.
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: Armageddon (1998)
Michael Bay‘s Armageddon was the highest grossing film of 1998 and did well, even after a similar movie Deep Impact was released first. Willis plays deep sea oil driller Henry Stamper, who is contacted by NASA to help them blow apart an asteroid headed toward Earth. If he can’t do it, it will wipe out all life on the planet. Things don’t end well for Harry, but he sacrifices himself to save his daughter’s boyfriend and save the world. Doesn’t he always?
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: The Sixth Sense (1999)
This is the film that put director M. Night Shyamalan on the map with its big twist. Willis plays Dr. Malcolm Crowe, a child psychologist shot by a former patient. He begins treating a child who says he can speak to the dead. The twist? Well, we won’t spoil it for you if you haven’t seen the film, but once you know, it all seem so obvious. The most quotable line from this film? “I see dead people.”
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: Sin City (2005)
Before working with director Robert Rodriguez on Planet Terror, the second half of the double feature Grindhouse, Willis took on a role in the black and white noir film Sin City. The film was based on the graphic novel from Frank Miller, who also wrote (along with Rodriguez) and directed (with Rodriguez and Tarantino). It was almost a direct translation from the comic. In the segment “That Yellow Bastard,” Willis plays detective John Hartigan who saves a young Nancy Callahan (Jessica Alba) and goes to jail. After many years of letters, the now-exotic dancer who loves Hartigan is kidnapped. Once again, Willis’ character sacrifices himself to save someone he loves.
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: RED (2010)
In another comic book adaptation, Willis plays Frank Moses, a retired CIA officer who spends his days talking to Sarah the pension check lady (Mary-Louise Parker) on the phone. When he realizes his phone is being tapped, he kidnaps Sarah to save her life. While on the run with her, he rounds up a gang of his old CIA buddies and tries to figure out who is trying to kill them all.
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: The Expendables 2 (2012)
Though he made an uncredited cameo in the Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger (whom he appeared with for the first time on screen) film The Expendables in 2010 as Mr. Church, the role was expanded in the sequel, The Expendables 2. The film is notable for not only bringing together the action stars from the first film, but adding even more.
Bruce Willis Movies and TV Spotlight: Looper (2012)
In Looper, Willis once again takes on time travel as he plays the future version of Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). Joe is a “looper,” a hitman who is sent back in time to take down future criminals. These agents eventually “close the loop” and kill their future selves. However, once young Joe learns that the mysterious Rainmaker is closing all the loops, things get complicated. The film is especially notable for the prosthetics worn by Gordon-Levitt to make him look more like Willis.
What’s your favorite Bruce Willis role? Let us know in the comments below!
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