Ivan Danko is one of the two protagonists in the 1988 film Red Heat.
He was portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger, who also played John Matrix in Commando, Mark Kaminski in Raw Deal, Dutch in Predator, Ben Richards in The Running Man, John Kimble in Kindergarten Cop, Trench Mauser in The Expendables, Jack Slater in The Last Action Hero and Ray Owens in The Last Stand.
Ivan Danko is a cop from Moscow and works with a partner, Lieutenant Yuri Ogarkov of the Moscow Militsiya lead a sting operation against Georgian drug kingpin Viktor Rostavili. However, Rostavili manages to evade capture, and in an ensuing firefight, Danko kills Viktor's brother,and Viktor kills Ogarkov and flees to the United States. As Danko is recovering from his injuries, Rostavili is arrested for a minor traffic violation in Chicago, and Danko is subsequently dispatched to America to retrieve the felon, under strict orders not to reveal the true nature of Rostavili's extradition. Upon arriving in Chicago, Danko is met by Detective Sergeant Art Ridzik and Detective Max Gallagher. As he is interrogating Rostavili, Danko confiscates a mysterious key hidden on his person. While Rostavili is being transported to the airport, the group is ambushed by his men and Gallagher is shot and killed, allowing Rostavili to escape. Against the wishes of local authorities, Danko resolves to remain in Chicago to apprehend Rostavili, and Ridzik is assigned to be his minder.
Through an informant, Danko and Ridzik learn that Rostavili is working with local street gangs to purchase and smuggle uncut cocaine into the Soviet Union. The duo confront Rostavili's American wife Cat Manzetti, but are led into an ambush where Rostavili demands Danko return his key, forcing the two to flee. Danko and Ridzik go to a hospital to interrogate one of Rostavili's men, injured during the earlier ambush, but he is killed by another of Rostavili's accomplices disguised as a nurse. Danko subsequently shoots and kills the assassin. Ridzik's superiors confiscate Danko's sidearm, as he is not licensed to carry one in the United States, and order him to cease the investigation. However Ridzik, who still wants to avenge his partner's murder, secretly gives Danko his spare gun. Cat is then murdered by Rostavili.
Returning to his hotel, Danko is attacked by Rostavili's men. While Danko fights them off, Rostavili sneaks into his room and steals the key. Ridzik takes Danko to visit a locksmith, where they match the key to ones produced for lockers at a bus terminal. Rostavili uses the key to retrieve his drug shipment, and steals an empty bus just as Danko and Ridzik arrive. Chasing him in another bus, Danko and Ridzik cause Rostavili to crash into an oncoming train. As Rostavili crawls out of the wreckage, Danko kills him. Later, Ridzik takes Danko to the airport. As a token of their new friendship, they exchange wristwatches. Danko tells Ridzik they are cops, not politicians, so it is okay for them to like each other.