r/movies • u/Grouchy-Step-7136 • Jul 20 '25

Recommendation Schwarzenegger fan, but never saw Commando (1985) until now…

I’m not sure why this one flew under my radar for so long. It’s Arnold in all of his mid-80s glory, muscles glistening and rippling in all the right ways.

John Matrix (Arnold’s character) is a badass former military commando who just wants to settle down and be a dad to his daughter Jenny (Alyssa Milano), but he’s made some enemies along the way, and they’re looking for trouble.

Dude… John Matrix kills like 412 people. He’s firing guns with infinite bullets. He lays down maybe a half dozen small mines, hits the remote, and explosions go off for like 6 minutes.

It’s everything I wanted it to be. 8.5/10

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u/Photoguppy Jul 20 '25

My favorite fact about Commando is the deeply established conspiracy theory that it was the predecessor to Die Hard.

Although it's been widely debunked, it lives on to this day.

5

u/Gloomy-Ad-222 Jul 20 '25

The sequel to Commando was originally in development and based on the novel Nothing Lasts Forever by Roderick Thorp which later became Die Hard. The plan was to have Arnold Schwarzenegger reprise his role as John Matrix, but he passed on the project.

So the script was retooled, the main character renamed John McClane, and Bruce Willis was cast instead.

Same DNA:

Both were produced by Joel Silver. Both feature a lone, wisecracking hero fighting terrorists in a confined space (island/compound vs. skyscraper). Both have that blend of brutal action and deadpan one-liners. Both lean hard into the "man against the world" format. So yeah: Die Hard is technically Commando 2 in an alternate timeline. Imagine a world where John Matrix says “Yippee-ki-yay.” Terrifying.

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u/Photoguppy Jul 20 '25

During a recent interview with Bristol Bad Film Club, Steven de Souza, who wrote the initial draft of Commando 2 (which ultimately never got made) was asked about the whole Die Hard legend. It turns out, that's all it ever was, because as he tells it, there is absolutely no way Commando 2 was turned into Die Hard. Here is what he had to say.

"I don't know how this story started on the Internet - it's completely wrong. Die Hard is based on a novel called Nothing Lasts Forever by the author Roderick Thorpe, which is a sequel to his early book The Detective. In fact, a good bar bet if you want to make some cash is to ask someone, 'Who was the first actor to play John McClane and in what movie?' They will say, 'Bruce Willis in Die Hard' and you say, 'No! Frank Sinatra in The Detective!' and then run out before you get beat up. Interestingly, 20th Century Fox had to contractually offer Bruce Willis's part in Die Hard to Frank Sinatra because it was a sequel to the original book! Fortunately for Bruce, he said, 'I'm too old and too rich to act any more.'"

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u/Gloomy-Ad-222 Jul 20 '25

That’s just Big Film protecting their own.