3. Bruce Willis
Let's face it, Bruce Willis is everyone's favourite Hollywood action hero, and his portrayals of John McClane are iconic. Die Hard launched his career after a series of anonymous, under-the-radar or under appreciated roles in films such as The First Deadly Sin and A Guru Comes (1980), along with 1982's The Verdict. Bruce Willis was only fifth choice for the role of John McClane. The others were Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Burt Reynolds, and Richard Gere. How glad we are that Willis landed the role, because we really can't imagine anyone else portraying the wise-cracking terrorist-busting NYPD detective, who was voted the twelfth greatest movie character by Empire.