Yipee Ki-Jai: Jai Courtney to Play John McClane Jr. in 'A Good Day to Die Hard'

Wednesday, 22 February 2012 13:12 Written by Jordan DeSaulnier

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Yipee Ki-Jai: Jai Courtney to Play John McClane Jr. in 'A Good Day to Die Hard'

The last time we saw little John McClane Jr., he was just a little tyke played by Noah land in 1988's Die Hard. Since a grown up version of his sister, Lucy McClane, was played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead in 2007's Live Free or Die Hard, it was all but inevitable that the fifth film would find Bruce Willis as John McClane joining forces with a now-adult John Jr. After months of searching for the right young actor to play the part, 20th Century Fox has formally announced that Jai Courtney has been selected to share the screen with Willis in next year's A Good Day to Die Hard. The studio also revealed an image of Courtney's screen test with Willis for good measure.

Courtney is best known for his 2010 role as Vasso on the Starz series Spartacus: Vengeance, and he appears in next year's One Shot. Interestingly, that Tom Cruise actioner is set to hit theaters just six days before A Good Day to Die Hard, which will begin principal photography this April for a Valentine's Day, 2013 release date. Way back in November, Deadline reported that the candidates to play John "Jack" McClane was down to four actors, including Aaron Paul and Liam Hemsworth, but Courtney was not included on that shortlist of candidates.

John Moore, a Fox favorite who helmed Behind Enemy Lines, The Omen, Flight of the Phoenix, and Max Payne for the studio, is set to direct A Good Day to Die Hard from a screenplay by Skip Woods.

The fourth sequel to John McTiernan's Die Hard will find the New York cop traveling to Moscow, Russia to get his son out of trouble, but once there, the indestructible elder McClane discovers an international plot that allows both and his progeny to be unflappably heroic on a global stage. The escalating scale is a natural progression for the sequels, each of which has expanded the scope from its predecessor.

Here's the full press release and screen test image, thanks to 20th Century Fox:

LOS ANGELES (February 22, 2012) __ Following a global casting search spanning several months, Jai Courtney has nabbed the coveted role of John (Jack) McClane, Jr., the son of Bruce Willis’ iconic action hero, in A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD.

A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD puts McClane on an international stage — truly a NYC fish out of water in Moscow — and introduces his estranged son Jack. An apple that has not fallen far from the tree, Jack may even be more of a hardass than his father. Despite their differences, they must work together to keep each other alive – and the world safe for democracy.

The film begins production this April, for a February 14, 2013 release.

Courtney, studied drama at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA), where he graduated in 2008. Following graduation Courtney quickly landed guest star roles on two hit Australian shows, Packed To the Rafters followed by All Saints. Later that year, Courtney won a Theatre Critics Award as Best Newcomer for his performance in The Turning for the Perth Theatre Company. In 2009 he landed the role of Varro in the international television hit, Spartacus: Blood and Sand. Fans of the show created an uproar over Varro’s death and to this day continue to lament about it on the many Spartacus fan sites and blogs. Last year, Courtney landed a starring role opposite Tom Cruise in One Shot, directed by Christopher McQuarrie.