Die Hard 6: Bruce Willis and Len Wiseman project to act as both a prequel and a sequel

It's no shock that 20th Century Fox has been planning yet another instalment in the Die Hard franchise for a while now, even after the unforgivably poor sequel that was A Good Day To Die Hard. But now that the ball finally seems to be rolling on the development of Die Hard 6, it appears as if the surprises were yet to come.

The film, also being referred to as Die Hard: Year One is set to be somewhat of an origins story – with Willis coming back to offer the character one last hurrah (we hope).

According to Deadline, the story will be largely set in 1979, almost a decade before the first film's events, and will detail McClane's beginnings as a New York City policeman and how he became the character we met in the first instalment.

But even though Willis' McClane may have been a dab-hand when it came to beating the bad guys, he was no superhero by any means, so a plot focusing on how he became just a slightly-better-than-average guy is an interesting decision, but it could be the kind of fresh idea that will give the series the new direction that it desperately needs.

It has been reported that whilst 60-year-old Willis won't be portraying the younger version of the character he originally played, the film will mix present day sequences in, so that the actor can reprise his iconic role in a cameo-like part.

Fans of the actor can't help but think this idea sounds a lot like the 2012 film Looper, but Fox promises the movie will simply be a prequel and a sequel rather than a time-travelling picture. Oh well, as long as that's cleared up! At least the studios know where they can start when it comes to casting a youthful McClane... here's looking at you, Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Director of Live Free or Die Hard (aka Die Hard 4.0) Len Wiseman is set to return to the franchise after having pitched the angle to producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who is likely to join the project when a few more details are set in stone. Apparently now, Wiseman is in search of a screenwriter to bring his unusual vision into a workable script.