Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsCannes Film FestivalStar WarsAsian Pacific American Heritage MonthSummer Watch GuideSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

Live Wire

  • 1992
  • R
  • 1h 25m
IMDb RATING
5.6/10
4.1K
YOUR RATING
Pierce Brosnan, Ben Cross, and Ron Silver in Live Wire (1992)
Trailer
Play trailer2:19
1 Video
53 Photos
ActionDramaThriller

After A US senator is killed, A Bomb Disposal Expert is brought in to investigate the deadly explosive and must uncover the terrorists plan.After A US senator is killed, A Bomb Disposal Expert is brought in to investigate the deadly explosive and must uncover the terrorists plan.After A US senator is killed, A Bomb Disposal Expert is brought in to investigate the deadly explosive and must uncover the terrorists plan.

  • Director
    • Christian Duguay
  • Writer
    • Bart Baker
  • Stars
    • Pierce Brosnan
    • Ron Silver
    • Ben Cross
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.6/10
    4.1K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Christian Duguay
    • Writer
      • Bart Baker
    • Stars
      • Pierce Brosnan
      • Ron Silver
      • Ben Cross
    • 35User reviews
    • 20Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Live Wire
    Trailer 2:19
    Live Wire

    Photos53

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 45
    View Poster

    Top cast36

    Edit
    Pierce Brosnan
    Pierce Brosnan
    • Danny O'Neill
    Ron Silver
    Ron Silver
    • Frank Traveres
    Ben Cross
    Ben Cross
    • Mikhail Rashid
    Lisa Eilbacher
    Lisa Eilbacher
    • Terry O'Neill
    Tony Plana
    Tony Plana
    • Al-red
    Al Waxman
    Al Waxman
    • James Garvey
    Brent Jennings
    Brent Jennings
    • Shane Rogers
    Philip Baker Hall
    Philip Baker Hall
    • Senator Thyme
    Michael St. Gerard
    Michael St. Gerard
    • Ben
    Clement von Franckenstein
    Clement von Franckenstein
    • Dr. Bernard
    Ivan E. Roth
    Ivan E. Roth
    • Process Server
    Selma Archerd
    Selma Archerd
    • Judge Blair
    Rick Cicetti
    • Bailiff
    Norman Burton
    Norman Burton
    • Senator Victor
    Scott Burkholder
    Scott Burkholder
    • Thyme's Aide
    Mark Phelan
    Mark Phelan
    • Thyme's Aide
    Tracy Tweed
    Tracy Tweed
    • Rolls Royce Girl
    Danielle Zuckerman
    • Mandy O'Neill
    • Director
      • Christian Duguay
    • Writer
      • Bart Baker
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews35

    5.64.1K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    akingofcomedy

    Priceless.

    This is fun bad. Too many laughs to enjoy.

    There's a forensic lab robot that grabs Bronson's ass, and it looks like a reject from the old Dr. Who.

    They seem to avoid ever telling you why these people are being killed - just hash it up to beltway politics.

    And they never hint at just how this amazing new explosive could ever possibly work. That's why Jurassic Park gave us the maple-covered mosquitoes. Just give us some kind of something to hang our hat on, even if it does strain disbelief.

    And not only is our hero recovering from a deep personal tragedy, but his wife is also sleeping with the villain. And there's a recurring panty-less victim who keeps getting rigged to blow.

    The best thing you can say about movies like this is that they never took themselves seriously. Well, for the most part that is.

    Check out Roy Scheider in Chain of Command, or Lou Diamond Phillips in Alien Express for similar projects. Even harder to swallow then their plots, believing they were ever sold in the first place.
    MODMAN

    Brosnan at his best.

    Long before his stint as James Bond, Pierce Brosnan did make some darn good movies. One of them is 'Live Wire'. Director Christian Duguay (The Hitchhiker series) has done a brilliant job in making Brosnan's entry into the world of action as smooth as possible. Brosnan plays Danny O' Neill, an Irish bomb defusion specialist working for the FBI's anti-terrorist division. The movie is a cat and mouse game between Brosnan's old adversary from the IRA and Brosnan himself. The IRA terrorist is out to make his millions from corrupt politicians and their wrongful ways. Ron Silver plays a Senator under threat and Brosnan is called in to protect him. The movie also intertwines Danny O' Neill's separation from his wife due to her alleged affair with the Senator (Ron Silver). All these make for very intriguing drama and fast paced yet "intelligent" action. Worth a rental definitely.
    7Daryl17

    Great movie, lots of action, unique twist on a tried and true formula!

    If you are a Pierce Brosnan fan, you must see this. This movie allows you to see Pierce Brosnan play a character that is not so James Bondian. The cast is great, and the story is the typical "hero saves the day" type. Unlike most terrorist type movies, the writers cleverly chose a weapon of destruction that is atypical and unique. I highly recommend this movie for action, good story, good characters, and entertainment in general. Not your run-of-the-mill action movie.
    liammurphy1

    great pre-bond brosnan

    This is the best pre-bond Brosnan movie (ok so that's not saying much) but this is relly enjoyable if you leave your brain at the door and get used to brosnan's dodgy american accent.

    a must see for all Brosnan & tounge in cheek action fans.

    rating 8/10 for originality 9/10 for action 6/10 for script and direction (could have been better)
    wellthatswhatithinkanyway

    The very definition of good-dumb fun

    STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All Costs

    Danny O'Neill (Pierce Brosnan) is a bomb disposal expert.He's your typical cynical,hard-bitten good guy type,chewing on a cigar and uttering hard-edged one liners.Not only that,he's got the typical good guy set up.His young daughter's been killed in a tragic swimming pool accident,he's getting stick from his superiors for his unorthodox approach to his job and his wife Terry (Lisa Eilbacher) has left him and has started seeing smarmy senator Frank Traveres (Ron Silver).His life is about to get a whole lot worse,though,when a nasty piece of work by the name of Mikhail Rashid (Ben Cross) and his sidekick Al-red (Tony Plana) start putting explosive devices in the drinking water of politicians and eventually get plans to start targeting the rest of society as well.

    In an action role he was to take on a few years before his debut as Bond,Brosnan manages the tough,swaggering good guy role reasonably well,as effective and convincing as he needed to be.Cross can always be relied on to deliver the goods in terms of presence as a good guy or bad guy respectively,but here his part is very poorly written and not given much meat to chew on at all.It's with the action that the film comes alive though,with one or two rollicking good sequences that you will have to see to believe.It certainly ain't with said performances or even the story which,by the end,is stewing so deeply in it's own preposterousness you can practically hear it gurgling.

    But,hey,if it wasn't so silly,maybe it wouldn't have been such fun.That,and a surprisingly and ultimately pleasantly compact running time make Live Wire a genuine piece of no-brainer entertainment to savour.

    Sit back,switch your brain off and enjoy.****

    More like this

    Detonator
    5.2
    Detonator
    After the Sunset
    6.2
    After the Sunset
    Taffin
    5.6
    Taffin
    Off Limits
    6.2
    Off Limits
    Live Wire 2: Human Timebomb
    3.9
    Live Wire 2: Human Timebomb
    The Curse
    5.1
    The Curse
    Nemesis
    5.4
    Nemesis
    Entangled
    4.0
    Entangled
    Detonator II: Night Watch
    5.1
    Detonator II: Night Watch
    Fugitive Among Us
    5.6
    Fugitive Among Us
    I.T.
    5.5
    I.T.
    Murder 101
    6.3
    Murder 101

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Pierce Brosnan waxed his body hair for the film.
    • Goofs
      When Terry is kidnapped, it is the middle of the day, while at the same time Danny and Frank are in the kitchen and it is 4:45 am.
    • Quotes

      Mikhail Rashid: [having drunken his own chemical explosive] Defuse THIS BOMB Danny O'Neil!

    • Alternate versions
      UK version was edited by 16 seconds to secure a '15' rating with cuts to detailed shots of home-made explosive being constructed from fertilizer.
    • Connections
      Featured in Bad Movie Beatdown: Live Wire (2010)

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ18

    • How long is Live Wire?Powered by Alexa
    • What are the differences between the R-Rated Version and the Unrated Version?
    • Why was the fountain filled with the explosive water?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 24, 1992 (Germany)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Explosiones mortales
    • Filming locations
      • Washington, District of Columbia, USA
    • Production company
      • New Line Cinema
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $9,000,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 25 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Pierce Brosnan, Ben Cross, and Ron Silver in Live Wire (1992)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Live Wire (1992) officially released in India in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb app
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb app
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb app
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.