"Bruce Willis is John McClane," says Timothy Olyphant. "It appears so second nature to him. You're watching a guy who is just so easygoing and relaxed.
The guy was having a ball." He plays the guy trying to wipe out Willis' character in "Live Free or Die Hard." One thing about this baddie: He does have a bad case of nerves.
"I just go to the set every day and think, 'So far, so good. The 39-year-old Olyphant, best known for playing sheriff Seth Bullock on the HBO series "Deadwood," plays a cyber-terrorist in the film, which begins with a July 4 attack on the United States that threatens to shut down the nation. "The guy I play is pretty slick and has figured out all the angles," Olyphant says.
"He knows that if someone were to hack into an infrastructure they could bring down this country in a few days. My character is someone who has worked for the government. "He warned them this could happen and now he's making it happen.
" Is terrorism a good subject for a big popcorn movie? "Our intention is for people to enjoy a roller-coaster ride with one of their favorite action heroes of all time. We don't disturb the fans to the point that it's not a fun ride.
I promise you that you will enjoy." As for playing the villain in a franchise known for great bad guys, Olyphant says the pressure was on. "I went into it without thinking that I had to out-do the villain played so deliciously by Alan Rickman in the first film.
It's a slippery slope as an actor to go down that line of thinking. You just can't go on the set thinking, 'I'll never do as good as that guy.'" He says that hanging out with Bruce Willis on a "Die Hard" set is an event.
"We were down in San Pedro shooting," he says. "Everywhere we went it was, 'Hey, Bruce!' The fans just came out of the woodwork, but they were more curious than anything.
They really love this character and want to see him back on the big screen." Olyphant -- last seen in "Catch and Release" with Jennifer Garner -- has a lot of other films in the hopper, and that's just how he wants it. "I'm feeling fortunate that Hollywood is looking at me and they haven't figured out exactly what to do with me.
The good part is that is I'm getting to play all sorts of characters," he says. "Please put it out there that if Martin Scorsese calls, I'm there." His next role is in "Stop-Loss," about the Iraq war.
"It's about these soldiers who come back," he says. "They have served and believe their tour is finished. I'm the Lieutenant Colonel who is saying, 'We've got to go back.
There are no choices.'" Olyphant gets to show another side of himself, which makes him happy. "I was asked the other day if I'd rather be a romantic hero, a villain or the guy who tries to kill Bruce Willis.
I'm trying to rise above a really bad joke here. "Honestly, the job is called acting," he says. "As for the bad joke, it's like what they say about sex and pizza.
Even when it's bad it's still pretty good." "Bruce Willis is John McClane," says Timothy Olyphant.
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