The last Die Hard film was released in 1995

"I used to bounce off the concrete a lot easier than I do now," the actor, 52, said at the film's London premiere.

"There were a couple of weeks where from my hip to my ankle I was black and blue. I got knocked out, I got some stitches. I wish I'd kept a scrapbook!"

The first Die Hard film, co-starring Alan Rickman, established Willis as a box office star in 1988.

But fans have had to wait 12 years for the actor to reprise the role of the wise-cracking reluctant hero John McClane.

'Beating'

Die Hard 4.0, known as Live Free and Die Hard in the US, sticks to the high-octane template of the previous three instalments.

The plot sees McClane battling to save the world from cyber-terrorists, and features an explosive confrontation with Hong Kong action star Maggie Q.

Hong Kong action star Maggie Q is Willis' co-star in Die Hard 4.0

"The stuff I do with Maggie is just bananas," Willis told reporters on the red carpet.

"Look at her, she's right over there. Put the camera on her.

"You would think I would be able to kick that girl's ass but not so much. I caught a beating.

"I hit her with the light switch, I had her light out, she got up right off the floor and came back after me, kicked me out a window.

"I'm thinking about going over there and picking a fight with her right now."

But Q put Willis in his place by telling reporters she was "a little too young" to watch the first Die Hard movie when it was released.

"I think I was around eight," she said, "but I watched it a few years after."

The Die Hard franchise has earned more than $740m (�392m) worldwide, not including DVD sales.

US film-maker Len Wiseman, who previously worked on the gothic Underworld movies, directed the latest instalment which is released in the UK on 4 July.