In the Line of Fire is a
1993 Academy Award-nominated
thriller film about a
psychopath who attempts to
assassinate the
President of the
United States and the
Secret Service agent who tracks him. The film was directed by
Wolfgang Petersen and stars
Clint Eastwood as Agent Frank Horrigan and
John Malkovich as assassin Mitch Leary.
Eastwood's character is the sole active-duty Secret Service agent remaining from the detail guarding
John F. Kennedy in
Dallas, Texas, at the time of his
assassination in 1963.
Rene Russo,
Dylan McDermott,
Gary Cole,
John Mahoney, and
Fred Thompson also star. The film was co-produced by
Columbia Pictures and
Castle Rock Entertainment, with Columbia handling distribution. It is also notable for being the last film in which Eastwood starred that he did not also direct. Petersen also originally offered the role of Leary to
Robert De Niro, who turned it down due to scheduling conflicts with
A Bronx Tale.