‘Masters Of The Air’: Apple TV+ Set January Premiere & Releases First-Look Photos
Apple TV+ has set a January premiere date and released some “first-look” photos for ‘Masters of the Air‘, the highly-anticipated third series from Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, producers of ‘Band of Brothers’ and ‘The Pacific’.
Based on Donald L. Miller’s book of the same name, and scripted by John Orloff, ‘Masters of the Air’ follows the men of the 100th Bomb Group (the “Bloody Hundredth”) as they conduct perilous bombing raids over Nazi Germany and grapple with the frigid conditions, lack of oxygen and sheer terror of combat conducted at 25,000 feet in the air. Portraying the psychological and emotional price paid by these young men as they helped destroy the horror of Hitler’s Third Reich, is at the heart of the drama. Some were shot down and captured; some were wounded or killed. And some were lucky enough to make it home. Regardless of individual fate, a toll was exacted on them all.
Ranging in location from the bucolic fields and villages of southeast England, to the harsh deprivations of a German prisoner-of-war camp, and depicting a unique and crucial time in world history, ‘Masters of the Air’ is enormous in both scale and scope, and a genuine cinematic achievement.
“‘Masters of the Air’ is a salute to the brave men of the 8th Air Force, who, through their courage and brotherhood, helped defeat Nazi Germany in World War II,” said executive producer Gary Goetzman. “Tom and Steven have always wanted to visualize cinematically what our author Don Miller has called, this ‘singular event in the history of warfare.’ We’re thrilled that Apple TV+ has given us the opportunity to combine the efforts of so many talented people, on-screen and behind the camera, to tell this important story.”
The limited series stars Academy Award nominee Austin Butler (Elvis, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), Callum Turner (Fantastic Beasts, The Capture), Anthony Boyle (Tetris, Ordeal By Innocence), Nate Mann (Licorice Pizza), Rafferty Law (Twist), Josiah Cross (King Richard), Branden Cook (Tell Me Lies), and Ncuti Gatwa (Doctor Who, Sex Education), and Academy Award nominee Barry Keoghan (The Banshees of Inisherin, Eternals, Chernobyl, Dunkirk).
Hailing from Apple Studios, the series is executive produced by Spielberg through Amblin Television, and Hanks and Goetzman for Playtone. Amblin Television’s Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey co-executive produce alongside Playtone’s Steven Shareshian. Graham Yost serves as co-executive producer.
John Orloff (Band of Brothers) writes the entire series and co-executive produces. Directors for the drama are Cary Joji Fukunaga (True Detective, No Time to Die), Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck (Captain Marvel, Billions, Mrs. America), Dee Rees (Bessie, Pariah, Mudbound), and Tim Van Patten (The Pacific, Boardwalk Empire, Game Of Thrones, Rome, The Sopranos).
On a side note, if you’re wondering why this is on Apple TV+ and not HBO like the other two series in this trilogy, the drama did originally begin pre-production at HBO. However, they opted not to move forward with it, possibly due to the $250 million price tag. Apple then stepped in to produce it under Apple Studios.
‘Masters of the Air‘ premieres Friday, 26th January 2024 on Apple TV+ worldwide with two episodes, followed by one episode weekly.
