Throughout his illustrious career, Bruce Willis made a name for himself as one a premier movie star. Not only that, many have since lauded Willis for his generosity as a performer and person. The A-lister also, however, earned a reputation for being somewhat headstrong when it came to working with certain directors. Filmmaker Rian Johnson had the opportunity to work with Willis on the acclaimed sci-fi film Looper, and he just opened up about what it was like working with the beloved star.
Looper is easily one of Rian Johnson’s seminal films, and it not only struck gold at the box office but also received critical acclaim. (The film even influenced Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival when it came to time travel.) A lot had to come together for the ambitious film to get off the ground, of course. During a recent chat with Rolling Stone, Rian Johnson recalled making the flick and explained just how crucial it was for the Die Hard icon to sign on. Johnson also revealed what he knew of his prospective co-lead’s reputation at that point:
The way that we got Looper made was Bruce said yes. We had Bruce Willis with a gun in a sci-fi movie. That got us our financing. I had heard all the stories, too.
Bruce Willis’ relationships with directors varied, with some referring to him as a delight and others making note of difficulties they had working with him. Die Hard 2 director Renny Harlin recalled having disagreements with Willis while making the film. Cop Out director Kevin Smith said he experienced “true darkness” when working with Willis on the 2010 comedy film. However, Smith later apologized to Willis for his remarks following the latter’s retirement from acting in 2022.
When Rian Johnson discussed his experience with the Moonlighting veteran, he had nothing but positive sentiments to share. Johnson didn’t seek to underplay the experiences that other filmmakers apparently had with the actor while sharing his own. However, he didn’t hold back when explaining why Bruce Willis was such a pleasure to work with on Looper (which is available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription):
And then he showed up on set, and I have never had a better experience with an actor. He was lovely, he worked his ass off on it. He really, really worked hard. He wouldn’t even go back to his trailer in between takes. He hung out on set. We never moved faster on set than when we were shooting with Bruce. It was the opposite of this image of him. I’m not saying the other stuff isn’t true. But I got very, very lucky. And I just had wonderful memories.
I would’ve loved to have been a fly on the wall while the 2012 thriller film was being shot, if only to rub shoulders with the impeccable cast. The film also stars the likes of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Emily Blunt, Paul Dano and Jeff Daniels. Someone would be hard-pressed to find a better assortment of actors.
Looper still stands as one of Bruce Willis’ best movies. At present, Willis himself is retired from acting, having unfortunately stepped away from the profession due to his frontotemporal dementia diagnosis. Various stars have honored him since then, with Rian Johnson doing so as well in 2022. He referred to Willis as one of the “all-time great movie stars of our generation.” I’m glad Willis and Johnson were able to work together and that it was a fruitful partnership.
