Hollywood's resident World War II buffs Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks look to the skies with "Masters of the Air," an Apple TV+ miniseries about the famous "Bloody 100th" airmen who conducted perilous bombing raids over Nazi Germany. Based on firsthand accounts from WWII airmen and Bloody 100th squad members, the "Masters of the Air" cast list sees some of the most critically-loved stars of young Hollywood embody decorated war heroes.
Videos by Wide Open Country
The nine-episode miniseries, which premieres January 26, 2024 on Apple TV+, is fronted by Oscar nominees Austin Butler ("Elvis") and Barry Keoghan ("The Banshees of Inisherin"). Butler plays the real-life Major "Buck" Cleven, who survived capture by the Nazis after his plane was shot down. For his part, Keoghan takes on Lt. Curtis Biddick, head of the daring "Escape Kit" B-17 bomber squad.
Like its companion series (previous Hanks-Spielberg joints "Band of Brothers" and "The Pacific"), "Masters of the Air" is biographical, bringing to life the harrowing first-person accounts of history's largest and deadliest conflict. The series is based on historian Donald L. Miller's 2006 bestseller "Masters of the Air," which chronicles America's 8th Air Force and the bomber boys who carried out air raids on Nazi Germany. It also draws upon 1993's "A Wing and a Prayer," an autobiographical work by Harry Crosby, one of the airmen of the Bloody 100th, played by Anthony Boyle ("Tetris") in the series.
Now, those unfathomably brave souls get the TV treatment. Here's the full "Masters of the Air" cast list, plus the real-life heroes each actor memorializes.
Austin Butler as Major Gale 'Buck' Cleven
Getty Images
Austin Butler gained widespread acclaim for his portrayal of Elvis Presley in 2022's "Elvis." His remarkable performance earned him Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards, as well as an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. TIME recognized Butler as one of the 100 most influential people of 2023.
Butler plays Major Gale Winston Cleven, nicknamed 'Buck,' an airman who served alongside his best friend John Egan in a bomber squadron that undertook so many dangerous and costly missions, their group became known as the "Bloody 100th." Cleven received a Distinguished Service Cross for a bombing raid on German positions in 1943. Despite being ordered to bail out, he took control and managed to land the plane safely in Africa. He was later downed behind German lines and ended up in a POW camp alongside Egan, enduring brutal winter conditions and long, deadly marches.
Barry Keoghan as Lt. Curtis Biddick
Getty Images
Barry Keoghan is a celebrated Irish actor known for his roles in both independent and blockbuster fare. You've seen him in "Saltburn," "The Batman," "Eternals," "Dunkirk," "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" and "The Green Knight." He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the 2022 dark comedy "The Banshees of Inisherin."
Keoghan plays Lt. Curtis Biddick, who was in charge of a crew of airmen aboard a B-17 bomber plane they called "Escape Kit" and led his men on dangerous bombing raids over Germany while under heavy fire.
Callum Turner as Major John 'Bucky' Egan
Getty Images
British actor Callum Turner is best known for his role as Theseus Scamander in the "Harry Potter" spinoff franchise "Fantastic Beasts." He's also appeared in "Emma.," "Queen and Country" and "The Capture," the latter of which earned him a BAFTA nomination for Best Actor in a TV series. Turner leads George Clooney's latest historical drama "The Boys in the Boat," about a group of collegiate rowers who won Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.
Turner plays Major John 'Bucky' Egan, the best friend of 'Buck' Cleven. He was seen as the classic idea of the devil-may-care wartime bomber pilot with a mustache and a hat always askew. In the book "A Wing and a Prayer," Egan and Cleven were described as "Air Corps raunch, their hats cocked on the back of their heads, ... both wearing white scarves, the souls of romanticism ... hated discipline." Both men served in the Bloody 100th together and endured life as prisoners of war in Germany.
David Shields as Major Everett Blakely
Photo by Phil Sharp
Rising British star David Shields emerged with roles in much-lauded films and TV series, like the period drama "Benediction," "Black Mirror," "The Crown," "Bad Education" and "Doctor Who."
Shields plays Everett Ernest Blakely, a career officer of the U.S. Air Force and a highly decorated B-17 pilot during World War II. He received 11 medals for his service, including the Silver Star and Distinguished Flying Cross, and held the record for most enemy aircraft shot down on a single mission with his crew on the plane "Just A Snappin," downing 9 enemy aircraft.
Anthony Boyle as Major Harry Crosby
Shane Anthony Sinclair/BAFTA/Getty Images for BAFTA
Irish actor Anthony Boyle gained fame on the stage for his portrayal of Scorpius Malfoy in the West End and Broadway productions of "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child," which earned him a Tony nomination. He's also appeared in "Tetris," "The Plot Against America" and "Tolkien." Boyle is set to play John Wilkes Booth in Apple TV+'s upcoming Lincoln assassination thriller "Manhunt."
Boyle plays Major Harry Crosby, who, despite being a brilliant mathematician and navigator on the "Just A Snappin" bomber, was known for a romantic worldview. During a raid on Germany, he once redirected course from their target in Bonn because it was where Beethoven once studied, and Crosby had listened to Beethoven on the gramophone the night before. Crosby later wrote "A Wing and a Prayer," one of the sources on which "Masters of the Air" is based.
Nate Mann as Major Robert 'Rosie' Rosenthal
Bruce Glikas/WireImage
Up-and-coming actor Nate Mann made his professional acting debut in 2020 with an appearance on "Ray Donovan," following it up with roles in "Licorice Pizza" and "Evil."
Mann plays Major Robert 'Rosie' Rosenthal, a highly-decorated veteran of the Bloody 100th. His crew, nicknamed "Rosie's Riveters," completed a 25-mission combat tour, with Rosenthal returning to duty for a total of 52 missions. After the war, Rosenthal returned to his legal career and served as an assistant to the U.S. prosecutor at the Nuremberg trials.
Ncuti Gatwa as 2nd Lt. Robert Daniels
Ian West/PA Images via Getty Images
Best known for his three-time-BAFTA-nominated role as Eric in all four seasons of Netflix's "Sex Education," Ncuti Gatwa now stars as the fifteenth Doctor in "Doctor Who." The Rwandan-Scottish star makes history as the first Black actor to take on the role.
Gatwa plays 2nd Lt. Robert Daniels, one of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen who was captured by the Nazis after his aircraft was shot down above France in 1944.
Rafferty Law as Sgt. Ken Lemmons
Dave Benett/Getty Images for Eco-Age
Raff Law is the son of actors Jude Law and Sadie Foster. The 27-year-old made his acting debut alongside his father in 2010's "Repo Men" and played Oliver Twist in the 2021 Dickens film "Twist." "Masters of the Air" marks his first-ever TV role.
Law plays Sgt. Ken Lemmons, the Arkansa-born Crew Chief of the Skipper II aircraft whose skills enabled the bomber to complete over 100 missions.
"Masters of the Air" premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024, with new episodes dropping every Friday through March 15.
