A Tribute to the Career of Bruce Wills: Ten of Our Favorite Films as the Actor Steps Away from Acting

Growing up as a lover of action movies, it’s hard not to be a fan of Bruce Willis. “Die Hard” remains one of my favorite movies of all time; but it’s hard not to appreciate even off-the-cuff action films like “Sin City,” “The Fifth Element,” and “The Jackal.” 

When Willis’ family announced he was stepping away from acting following an aphasia diagnosis, many, myself included, were shocked. He had formed such a cornerstone of cinema over the years, it’s hard to imagine a Hollywood without Bruce Willis. He is an extremely likable personality, and excelled in most every role he played. He’s most loved for action films, but was no stranger to dramas (“The Story of Us”) or indie films (Kurt Vonnegut’s “Breakfast of Champions”). 

While Willis had played parts in a number of TV series and short films prior, it’s fair to argue that “Die Hard” catapulted him to success and into the action hero we all know and love. Willis played the hero John McClane with such zeal, realness, and personality that he was destined to become a star. The film’s bevy of sequels would attest to this. Shortly after, Willis would appear in the TV series “Moonlighting” and go on to star in “Look Who’s Talking Too,” “The Last Boy Scout,” and “Death Becomes Her”—and the rest is history. 

In honor of Bruce Willis’ film career, and in remembrance of the impact he’s left on cinema, we at The Movie Buff are publishing a list of our top ten favorite Bruce Willis roles throughout the actor’s career. The list is not ranked, and certainly not exhaustive. Have a read, and let us know your favorite Willis film(s) in the comments below. 

1. Butch Coolidge, ‘Pulp Fiction’ (1994)

While Quentin Tarantino’s classic “Pulp Fiction” is often better-known for the John Travolta/Samuel L. Jackson pairing, Bruce Willis plays an integral character in the film as fighter on the run Butch Coolidge. Willis plays the character well. He has an adversarial relationship with the film’s villain, Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames), but has an opportunity to set up one of the most famed lines of the movie, the immortal “I’m going to go Medieval on his buttocks.” The film is a personal favorite of The Movie Buff writer Matt DeCristo, as penned in his 2014 review. 

2. John McClane, ‘Die Hard’ (1988)

John McTiernan’s “Die Hard” is an action masterpiece. In a sea of action hero movies that would pin the hero as a can’t die, invincible killing machine, Willis’ character from this movie, John McClane, was a breath of fresh air. He was a simple guy, a cop from New York trying to see his wife that becomes embattled against a group of terrorists. The shoot-outs and action set-pieces are exciting. But what really stands out is Willis’ realism. He gets shot, he gets hurt, he comes to the brink of giving up. His camaraderie with everyone involved, from a fellow cop (Reginald VelJohnson) to the villainous Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) is unparalleled, and the film is a yearly must-watch for many an action lover. 

3. Harry Stamper, ‘Armageddon’ (1998) 

While 1998 would see two asteroid-killing-Earth movies, “Armageddon” is a personal favorite. He plays Harry Stamper, an oil rig owner who is tasked to save the world by Truman (Billy Bob Thornton) when an asteroid is discovered to be heading toward Earth. The film is full of big talent (Michael Clarke Duncan, Owen Wilson, Ben Affleck, Steve Buscemi, et al.), but Willis becomes the de facto leader of the group. Stamper is a hard-working man that doesn’t fit in with the film’s NASA types, but the whole thing works. And his final scene is still one that hits emotionally every time. A solid film, made all the better by Willis’ inclusion. 

4. The Jackal, ‘The Jackal’ (1997)

“The Jackal” was an off-key film for Willis, predominately because he would play the villain. The Jackal was a cold, compassionate-less hitman who is hired to kill a government higher-up. For a hitman that starts off in Russia and heads to the U.S., what is different about “The Jackal” is the fact it would follow Wills’ Jackal for most of the film, instead of taking part mostly from the point of those trying to stop him. Additionally, the addition of an adversary for him in Richard Gere makes the film have a cat-and-mouse feel. Willis would show he is extremely capable of playing the villain, coming across either comically droll if not downright evil. A classic role for the actor and one of his best. 

5. Malcolm Crowe, ‘The Sixth Sense’ (1999) 

Directed by M. Knight Shyamalan, “The Sixth Sense” is revered by fans for having one of the best twist endings of all time. Regardless of that, the film stars Bruce Willis as a child psychologist who works with a frightened boy (Haley Joel Osment) who proclaims he has the ability to “see dead people.” Willis is great here, playing a kind of sad, obsessed character who has lost touch with the important things, brought full-circle, of course, with the film’s iconic twist. The film shows that Willis could show great range, not only able to play action-type roles, but also emotional, personal ones as well. “The Sixth Sense” is a great movie, and a great Willis in a lead role. 

6. Dwayne Hoover, ‘Breakfast of Champions’ (1999)

My brother introduced me to his works, and for a while I devoured Kurt Vonnegut’s books. My intro—and one of my favorites—was always “Breakfast of Champions,” the story of a rich car dealer who is slowly losing his mind, trapped between a host of insane elements. If you look at the poster for this movie, with Willis holding two American flags and draped in a pinstripe suit, you’ll get some idea of how off-kilter this movie was for him. The movie, which grossed less than $200,000 worldwide, is indie through-and-through; and I just love that Willis was willing to do this. It’s the actor at his most zany, and a must-see film if you want to see something other than Willis’ action forays. 

7. Hartigan, ‘Sin City’ (2005)

Directed by a triumvirate of directors (Frank Miller, Robert Rodriquez, and Quentin Tarantino), “Sin City” was a dark, bleak descent into a visual graphic novel. The film’s players are mostly basked in violence and corruption; but Bruce Willis plays ‘Hartigan,’ who is positioned as one of the last honest cops in the city. He becomes embroiled in the film’s events, spending most of the film chasing a yellow/green-colored perp whom he eventually dispatches. What’s great about Willis here is he is able to slip into Miller’s vision easily and without effort. He plays a cop, but this is no John McClane. He plays a bitter, lonely man seeking justice the only way he knows how. The entire film is great, and Willis just ads to that. 

8. Jimmy Tudeski, ‘The Whole Nine Yards’ (2000)

Directed by Johnathan Lynn, “The Whole Nine Yards” is a comedy involving a dentist (Matthew Perry) and a hitman (Bruce Willis), and shows that Willis is as adept at comedy as he is at action. During the film’s run, Willis has great foreboding as the albeit comedic villain, as well as good chemistry with both Perry and co-star Amanda Peet. But on top of all of that, it just shows that Willis is an actor who is not afraid to take himself too seriously and do schticky roles. The film fared well critically, and is just another example of the range Willis had that often flew under the radar. 

9. Mr. Goodkat, ‘Lucky Number Slevin’ (2006) 

Writes The Movie Buff critic Joe Hughes, “Lucky Number Slevin” throws the viewer down a rabbit hole of mystery, red herrings, and unreliable narration through the eyes of some of the greatest actors in the business. None though shone as bright as Bruce Willis in the role of Mr. Goodkat. Cold, calculating but exceptionally funny in the darkest of ways, Bruce Willis set the pace for the chaos to follow in this balls to the walls darkly humorous action thriller. Gotta love a good old Kansas City Shuffle; gotta love Bruce Willis.

10. Ernest, ‘Death Becomes Her’ (1992) 

Directed by Robert Zemeckis, “Death Becomes Her”—a tour de force between Goldie Hawn and Meryl Streep—is an odd place to find a good performance by Bruce Willis, but here we are. The film, which is a comedic treatise on vanity and not letting bygones be bygones would be anchored by Willis, sandwiched between these two women. Willis’ Ernest is a mortician who’s dead inside already; and the whole thing works because Ernest is content to sit and watch Hawn and Streep fight it out and seek eternal life and beauty until he simply can’t take it anymore and explodes. The film ends in a chaotic way; and despite the prowess by Hawn and Streep, Willis’ performance is often lost in the shuffle, though it shouldn’t be. 

While by no means an exhaustive list, we hope the above films show just how much Bruce Willis means to us here at The Movie Buff, as well as how much he means to the film community at large. 

We wish Bruce Willis the best of luck in battling his aphasia diagnosis. We also wish him and his family the best during this difficult time. 

If you agree with our list or have a Willis favorite we forgot, let us know in the comments below.

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