"There is no deal set for Die Hard 4," says Jeffrey Godsick, Fox's senior vice president of publicity. "We've been in discussions [to make a sequel] ever since Die Hard 3, but money has not even entered the discussion yet." The word from Willis' camp is a predictable "no comment."
A $25-million deal would be staggering, even by Hollywood's bloated salary standards, and would likely send $20 million men Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford, Mel Gibson, John Travolta, Jim Carrey and Willis' Planet Hollywood co-owners and pals Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sly Stallone scurrying to catch up to the one-time New York barkeep and Moonlighting costar.
The rumor mill kicked into overdrive this morning when nationally syndicated gossip columnist Liz Smith cited "Hollywood insiders" in claiming that Fox executives had been waiting to see how Willis' The Fifth Element fared before signing him to Die Hard 4. The Luc Besson-directed Element nailed down more than $50 million in its first 24 days domestically and has also done well internationally. That is apparently well enough, in producers' minds, to merit the $25 mil.
It was less than 10 years ago that Hollywood jaws dropped when Willis signed for $5 million to make Die Hard. That film and its two sequels combined to earn more than $700 million worldwide.
Word on the street is that the film will be set in the jungle and be based on a script called Tears of the Sun written by Chris Gerolmo, who wrote and directed the 1995 HBO flick Citizen X.
Fox's reaction to the jungle story? "We haven't even locked down what the movie is going to be," Godsick says. "Someone called and said they heard Die Hard 4 is underwater. It's really weird how all this stuff happens."