Last Action Hero

Last Action Hero
A large muscular man jumping out of the cinema screen, hanging off a helicopter and carrying a boy under his arm
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJohn McTiernan
Screenplay by
Story by
Produced by
  • John McTiernan
  • Steve Roth
Starring
CinematographyDean Semler
Edited by
Music byMichael Kamen
Production
companies
Distributed byColumbia Pictures[1][2]
Release dates
  • June 13, 1993 (1993-06-13) (Westwood)
  • June 18, 1993 (1993-06-18) (United States)
Running time
131 minutes[3]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$85 million[4]
Box office$137.3 million[4]

Last Action Hero is a 1993 American fantasy action comedy film directed and produced by John McTiernan and co-written by Shane Black and David Arnott.[5] It is a satire of the action genre and associated clichés, containing several parodies of action films in the form of films within the film.[6] The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as Jack Slater, a Los Angeles police detective within the Jack Slater action film franchise, while Austin O'Brien co-stars as Danny Madigan, a boy magically transported into the Slater universe, and Charles Dance as Mr. Benedict, a ruthless assassin from the Slater universe who escapes to the real world. Schwarzenegger also served as the film's executive producer and plays himself as the actor portraying Jack Slater. The film also marked Art Carney and Tina Turner's last feature film before their deaths in 2003 and 2023, respectively.

Last Action Hero failed to meet the studio's expectations at the box office, and was both a critical and commercial disappointment. Since its release Last Action Hero gained a cult following,[7] with some noting it as underrated in Schwarzenegger's catalogue.[8][9][10][11]

  1. ^ a b c "Last Action Hero". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. American Film Institute. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
  2. ^ Weinraub, Bernard (June 22, 1993). "Columbia Ponders The Fate Of 'Hero'". The New York Times. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  3. ^ "Last Action Hero (15)". British Board of Film Classification. July 13, 1993. Retrieved May 10, 2019.
  4. ^ a b Last Action Hero at Box Office Mojo
  5. ^ "Last Action Hero". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
  6. ^ "'Last Action Hero' Can't Deliver As Action Flick, Parody In One". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on September 8, 2012. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  7. ^ "Last Action Hero : Le flop devenu culte de John McTiernan". Premiere (in French). July 24, 2015. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019.
  8. ^ "Arnold Schwarzenegger's Best Movies Ranked". Collider. March 6, 2022.
  9. ^ "These Are the Best Arnold Schwarzenegger Movies, Ranked". MovieWeb. February 18, 2022.
  10. ^ "Every Arnold Schwarzenegger Action Movie Ranked from Worst to Best". Screen Rant. August 7, 2021.
  11. ^ Porter, Edward (June 25, 2023). "10 best Arnold Schwarzenegger movies — ranked". The Times.