Eighteen Brilliant But Unawarded Acting Performances
13. Alan Rickman – Die Hard
Bruce Willis is, admittedly, the star of the show, but “Die Hard” would have been a very different sort of movie without the talent of Alan Rickman to bring its witty and sarcastic terrorist to life.
Who else could have brought together the class that comes from a history in theater and the pure evil that we later see from Rickman in films like “Sweeney Todd” and “Harry Potter”?
The Academy didn’t see it that way, however; Rickman has never been nominated for an Oscar, though he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his work in the miniseries “Rasputin,” and a BAFTA for his supporting role in the 1991 version of “Robin Hood.”
Rickman isn’t the only “Die Hard” actor who was snubbed, as even Bruce Willis wasn’t nominated that year. The movie didn’t win any Oscars, in fact, though it was nominated for four. Interestingly, it was well received internationally, earning four wins for Best Foreign Language Film.
Although Hans Gruber apparently died at the end of the first “Die Hard,” there are rumors that he may somehow be revived in a future “Die Hard” – as Hans is indisputably the best “Die Hard” villain in the series, let’s hope those rumors are true!
