Today in Die Hard – the sequel’s still with us but Dwayne T. Robinson isn’t.

The Hollywood Reporter tells us today that Kate Beckinsale’s husband Len Wiseman (who is also some kind of “director”) is in discussions to direct Die Hard 4. John McTiernan – the director who launched the spawning-many-imitators franchise 18 years ago and then rescued it from being Harlinned – didn’t return phone calls to see if he’d be interested in the gig.

So is this good news or bad news?

• Wiseman is not big with the critics. Underworld scored a 31% at Rotten Tomatoes (“Wiseman…has art directed this film to death.”), with Underworld: Evolution faring worse at 15% (“Wiseman…advances from the inept awfulness of his first vampire-versus-werewolf idiocy to the determined mediocrity of this incomprehensible follow-up.”). Ouch.
• Fans of the Underworld movies have been a bit kinder…but not by much.
• Although it’s likely been rewritten by now, the script for Die Hard 4 got a fairly solid thumbs-up at LatinoReview.com last August – despite the fact that the story’s got McClane pitted against nerds with machine guns Internet terrorists.

But even the ups-and-downs of Hollywood sequels far pale in comparison to the sad news of character actor/serial onscreen bastard Paul Gleason’s death from lung cancer this weekend. Gleason’s appearances in two generation- and genre-defining films – Die Hard and The Breakfast Club – firmly seal him into cinematic history in our book, not to mention earning him a heartfelt Webeuology by the ever-capable Mr. Beaks.

Goodbye, Deputy Chief Dwayne T. Robinson. Hello, pathetic sequel-milking.