Is “Die Hard” a Christmas Movie? How the Film's Cinematographer Was Convinced It's a Holiday Classic (Exclusive)

'A Christmas Story' star Peter Billingsley tells PEOPLE how he proved to filmmaker Jan de Bont that ‘Die Hard’ is more than just an action film

As a seasoned holiday-movie star, Peter Billingsley isn't without his own opinion when it comes to whether or not Die Hard is a Christmas film.

On an episode of A Cinematic Christmas Journey podcast, the 52-year-old actor — who famously starred in A Christmas Story and appeared in other holiday hits, such as Elf and Four Christmases — and co-host Steve Byrne discussed all things Die Hard with the help of the film's cinematographer, Jan de Bont.

“You know Jan de Bont’s work — he directed Twister and Speed,” Billingsley tells PEOPLE. “I had seen some quotes of him that he did not believe that Die Hard was a Christmas movie. He said, ‘I just don't see it.’ So I said, ‘Would you mind if I try to convince you of why this is a Christmas movie? I know you made it. I know you’ve lived with it for a very long time, since 1988.’ He said, ‘Okay.’ ”  

Related: The 50 Best Christmas Movies to Stream

Although Die Hard came out in theaters during the summer of 1988, the film’s plot — about a New York City police detective played by Bruce Willis who gets caught up in a terrorist takeover of a Los Angeles skyscraper — takes place on Christmas Eve.

“I think what sold [de Bont] is I said, ‘That relationship between John McClane and his estranged wife, they're fractured, but by the end, they learn to forgive each other. There’s hope, there’s joy, and they’re going to go and have a great Christmas morning with their kids,” Billingsley says.

“Not to mention there’s Christmas songs, and they have the snow falling. In my opinion it is a Christmas movie,” he adds.

Die Hard director John McTiernan agrees with fans and critics who categorize Die Hard as a holiday film. “We hadn’t intended it to be a Christmas movie, but the joy that came from it is what turned it into a Christmas movie,” he told the American Film Institute in 2020. 

Related: The Sweetest Photos of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore as First-Time Grandparents

However, during Comedy Central’s 2018 Roast of Bruce Willis, the star finally gave his input on the Die Hard debate 30 years after the film’s release. “I did this roast for one reason and for one reason only, to settle something once and for all,” said Willis. “Now, please listen very carefully: Die Hard is not a Christmas movie! It’s a goddamn Bruce Willis movie.”

Despite Willis’ opinion, Billingsley convinced de Bont otherwise.

“I went through my criterion,” Billingsley tells PEOPLE. ”And he said, ‘I’ve never thought about it that way.’ He said, ‘You have now convinced me it is a Christmas movie.’ And I was like, ‘Yes!’ So I was able to change a filmmaker's mind, which was cool.”

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