High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The Die Hard series is a series of action films beginning with Die Hard in 1988, which was based on the 1979 novel, Nothing Lasts Forever by Roderick Thorp. All five films are centered around the character of John McClane (portrayed by Bruce Willis), a New York City police detective who finds himself fighting a group of terrorists in each episode. There are also several video games based on the films, as well as a comic book series released in August 2009.