The legendary actor Bruce Willis called a “huge hero of mine”
Despite reigning as one of the biggest movie stars on the planet throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, Bruce Willis was never somebody who ever troubled the awards season conversation.
He may have won a Golden Globe and a Primetime Emmy during his time on Moonlighting before picking up another Emmy for his contributions to Friends. Still, he was only ever nominated for one major accolade during his eminently successful time as a big-screen performer.
That came when he landed a Golden Globe nod for ‘Best Supporting Actor’ in Norman Jewison’s 1989 drama In Country, which was strange in and of itself considering he was the top-billed name in the cast and played the main role. A bare trophy cabinet is hardly reflective of a legacy, though, one which Willis secured through the sheer volume of popular hits and classics he lent his name to.
While action-packed blockbusters were his bread-and-butter, Willis was a unique A-lister in his pomp for the way in which he’d regularly alternate between headlining broad crowd-pleasers and taking on smaller projects. This was done entirely by design so that he could work with some of the best actors and directors Hollywood had to offer.
It may have taken a while, but in 2008, the Die Hard legend finally got the chance to work with one of his heroes when he appeared alongside Robert De Niro in the satirical dramatic comedy What Just Happened. As he explained to David Sheff, it was the actor’s transformative performance in Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull that turned him into a dyed-in-the-wool De Niro devotee.
“I was blown away when he did that, but I know how difficult it was for him to lose the weight. I was such a fan of that film and of him,” he said, an accurate opinion considering De Niro has spoken at length on how difficult it was for him to pack on the pounds and get into the mindset of Jake LaMotta.
Unsurprisingly, then, Willis admitted that was the entire reason he signed on for What Just Happened. “I’m doing it because De Niro has always been a huge hero of mine. I get to work all my scenes in the film with him,” he continued. “What can I say? Working with De Niro is a thrill.”
That was the one and only time they collaborated on the same project. Even though the film tanked at the box office and was greeted rather tepidly in all corners, it allowed Willis the opportunity to realise a long-held dream, albeit under unique circumstances, considering he cameos as himself in the movie. He finds his latest production being threatened with cancellation because he steadfastly refuses to shave the huge bushy beard he’s grown, leading to some tense exchanges with De Niro’s protagonist, Ben.
Watch the trailer below.
