As New York City is rocked by a series of bombs the mastermind behind the attacks demands that the NYPD call John McClane (Bruce Willis). McClane is called in and hurled into an increasingly deadly situation with cab driver Zeus Carver (Samuel L. Jackson). The terrorist tells McClane he has planted bombs throughout the city and offers clues so that McClane might defuse them. The pair race through the city trying to find the bombs in subways and a school. However, McClane and Carver discover that what looked like simple terrorist revenge turns out to be cover for a much larger plot.