EXCLUSIVE - "Cleaner" is being called the modern-day "Die Hard," but instead of German terrorists, the hero finds herself battling eco-terrorists.
In "Cleaner," "Star Wars" actress Daisy Ridley plays Joey Locke, someone in the wrong place at the wrong time as a group of radical activists take over a federal building in London. The eco-terrorists plan to disrupt an energy company's annual gala and force their hostages to tell their cameras about their alleged corruption. Little blood is shed until an extremist within their ranks takes matters into his own hands and has nothing but violence on the brain.
Ridley plays an ex-soldier turned window cleaner who is suspended 50 stories up when the radicals commandeer the building. But while the comparisons to "Die Hard" abound, director Martin Campbell said that the 1988 thriller didn't really cross his mind at all.
"To be honest, I didn't take any inspiration from ‘Die Hard,’ which, by the way, I loved," Campbell, who also directed the 2006 James Bond movie "Casino Royale," told Fox News Digital. "You know, you're bound to get the comparison because it's a skyscraper and it's one person against the bad guys, if you see what I mean. So, of course, there's going to be comparisons."
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"Beyond that, to be honest, we're entirely different," Campbell continued. "You know, we have a woman protagonist, who is Daisy, as opposed to Bruce Willis. And I think the so-called eco-terrorists have a very interesting kind of dynamic between the two generations as to the conflict within the group, I think is something very different."
Campbell said that environmentalism is a cause close to his heart, but clearly only one of the group's leaders in the film had the right idea about how to get their message across.
"I mean, clearly, it's happening," Campbell said of environmental dangers. "You know, we're heading for the abyss. No question about it. And in the movie, of course, you have Clive Owen, who's a sort of veteran activist. And who is, I believe, is doing exactly the right thing, which is, they've taken over this particular gala evening of an energy company which is corrupt, which environmentally disastrous with what they've been doing for the shake of their shareholders. And the Clive Owen character, Marcus, absolutely believes that in putting the management team up, getting them to confess and getting that out to the networks and so forth."
But the villain of the film, Noah, expertly played by Taz Skylar, changes the group's message from one of revolution to one of reckoning. And the way to do that, he believes, is to blow everybody up.
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"Because he believes that the planet will only repair itself if all human beings are wiped off the face of the earth, which is totally psychotic, of course," Campbell said of Noah. "But nevertheless, who knows, in the future he might be right. I mean, you know, maybe something will happen that will – but obviously now, of course, that is crazy. I mean, totally psychotic. He believes that everything, including killing himself, is actually the way to make the grand statement."
In recent years, environmental activists around the world have disrupted conferences, concerts, performances, major athletic events and more in order to bring awareness to their cause. Just Stop Oil protesters have made a habit of throwing ink on priceless paintings or, more recently, disrupting a performance of William Shakespeare’s "The Tempest" featuring actress Sigourney Weaver.
In other cases, climate activists have even thrown orange powder on Stonehenge, the ancient landmark in Wiltshire, England. And tennis fans will remember that in September 2023, an individual from the climate group Extinction Rebellion glued his feet to the stadium floor of Arthur Ashe stadium during a match at the US Open while wearing a shirt that read End Fossil Fuels.
Campbell said he and the leading men in his movie would argue some of these examples don't go far enough.
"I remember in London they were all blocking up motorways," Campbell said. "There was a whole thing where they're sitting on the motorways and blocking, which was great. It lasted a week, right? And then it vanished off the media. And then they went on to something else. And, you know, Noah's view is exactly that, it's just not enough. It doesn't change anything. And in order to get any kind of change, you have to do something very, very dramatic, something very drastic. Otherwise, nothing will change. Whereas, of course, that's in direct contrast to Clive Owen's character, who believes in making the big gesture, but making it nonviolent."
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When Ridley was asked about those hard to escape "Die Hard" comparisons, she called "Cleaner" a love letter to the Bruce Willis classic.
"I mean, look, we called it ‘Dry Shard,’" Ridley told Men's Journal. "Well, I called it ‘Dry Shard’ because initially we were actually supposed to film on the Shard. [As opposed to One Canada Square]. But then, I re-rewatched ‘Die Hard’ at Christmas. Oh, what a movie. I feel like it's a love letter to Die Hard in some ways. But, of course, most of what goes on with me [in ‘Cleaner’] is outside of the building, and ‘Die Hard’ is mostly inside. But, it really felt, yeah, this felt like a love letter to that."
Campbell said Ridley is such a skilled action star that he barely had to call on stunt doubles for her.
"Well, first of all, she's very good at action," the director said. "I mean, just intuitively, she's very good. Secondly, she rehearses on her days off. While we're shooting other stuff, she would be rehearsing those fight scenes, and she probably ended up doing three weeks of rehearsals only because, you know, there is nothing sped up – they're all real time, those scenes. And the great thing was, I didn't have to double her. Virtually, she did it all herself. I mean, I, you know, maybe once or twice. But beyond that, no, I mean, we – you know, she did it herself and, you know, all credit to her."
"Cleaner" is in theaters Friday, Feb. 21.
Fox News' Alba Cuebas-Fantauzzi contributed to this report.
