Bruce Willis returns as iconoclastic cop John McClane in “A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD.” ©Frank Masi/20th Century Fox.

By ANGELA DAWSON

Front Row Features

HOLLYWOOD—Ever wonder how Bruce Willis came to utter his famous “Yippee Ki-Yay M*****?” We did too. So while interviewing Bruno for his latest turn as cop-turned-superhero John McClane in “A Good Day to Die Hard,” we asked him. Here’s what he had to say.

“It was an ad-lib. Alan Rickman from the first film, the bad guy, he was such a good bad guy, he was constantly picking on me and he said something to me and I just happened to let that line slip out. It just became part of the fabric of the film. Now when we say it, (director) John (Moore) had an idea we should say it right away and get it out of the way. We tried that but… It always comes at a moment of high danger. It’s just amazing to me that that line has lasted this long. Kids say it to me on the street. Grandmoms. Football players. It’s a little awkward. I’m happy that they say it.”

You can see Willis exclaim this and other bits of snappy dialogue while being shot at, punched, run off the road and nearly blown to smithereens in “A Good Day to Die Hard,” the fifth in the longrunning—25 years—film franchise. His iconic McClane character goes to Russia looking for his missing adult son and finds a whole lot of trouble. The action packed thriller opens in theaters February 14.

Meanwhile, to commemorate the 25th year since “Die Hard” premiered, Fox recently unveiled a mural on the side of Stage 8 on the studio backlot.