Masters of the Air executive producer says they "lucked out" with casting: "Who knew we were going to have Doctor Who?"

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Exclusive: Gary Goetzman talks scoring a casting hat trick with Master of the Air's star-studded ensemble

Austin Butler and Callum Turner in Masters of the Air
(Image credit: Apple TV Plus/Total Film)

Focusing on the key campaigns of the US air force during World War 2 was something executive producer Gary Goetzman and his partners, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, "had always talked about" in the wake of their hit shows Band of Brothers (2001) and The Pacific (2010).

And they've done just that with Masters of the Air, a new Apple TV Plus series featuring an all-star ensemble cast that's spearheaded by Austin Butler and Callum Turner – pictured above in a new, exclusive image – but also includes Barry Keoghan, Ncuti Gatwa, Anthony Boyle, Raff Law, and many, many more. 

With Butler hot off an award-winning Elvis, Turner and Keoghan on fire, and Gatwa currently playing TV’s most famous doctor, Masters of the Air, like companion series Band of Brothers and The Pacific before it, has cast another company of bellwether stars.

"There’s over 300 speaking parts here. [Casting director] Lucy Bevan and her team just did a brilliant job. Who knew we were going to have Doctor Who?" Goetzman tells Total Film in our new issue out this Thursday, which features Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire on the cover. 

"I called Tom [Hanks, who had worked with Butler on Elvis], and said, 'What do you think of this actor, Austin Butler?' He was like [mimics Hanks perfectly], 'Dude, I think he’s great.' We lucked out – it’s just a great bunch of guys. I couldn’t be prouder of them."

Based on Donald L. Miller’s bestseller, Masters of the Air: How the Bomber Boys Broke Down the Nazi War Machine, the limited series tracks the efforts of the Eighth Air Force stationed in Thorpe Abbotts, Norfolk in destroying key European Nazi targets. While the British air force saturation-bombed at night, the American strategy was to fly in daylight in order to target specifically – and the missions were therefore lethal.

Masters of the Air premieres on January 26 on Apple TV Plus. You can read more about it and a whole lot else besides in the new issue of Total Film when it hits shelves and digital newsstands on Thursday, January 4. Check out the covers below:

Total Film's Godzilla x Kong covers

(Image credit: Warner Bros/Legendary/Total Film)

Pre-order the issue here to bag your copy, or click here to subscribe to Total Film and never miss another exclusive. You’ll get every issue before it's in stores, and you’ll get subscriber-exclusive covers. 

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(Image credit: Warner Bros/Legendary/Total Film)
Jane Crowther
Freelance Writer

Jane Crowther is a freelance writer and the Editor-in-Chief at Hollywood Authentic magazine, having formerly been the longtime Editor of Total Film magazine. Jane is also the Chair of The Critics' Circle and a BAFTA member. You'll find Jane on GamesRadar+ exploring the biggest movies in the world and living up to her reputation as one of the most authoritative voices on film in the industry.

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