https://www.navytimes.com/off-...-next-month-on-oahu/

Midway blockbuster starring Woody Harrelson to begin filming next month on Oahu

By: J.D. Simkins   23 minutes ago

The filmmaker behind massive hits like “Independence Day" and “The Patriot” has locked in a filming location for a remake of the 1976 movie “Midway," starring Charlton Heston and Henry Fonda, about the decisive 1942 naval battle that became a turning point for U.S. forces in the war in the Pacific.

After scouting filming locations around Pearl Harbor, German director Roland Emmerich settled on Oahu, and will begin filming the $100-million blockbuster next month at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickham. The same location was most recently used to film Cameron Crowe’s offensively awful film “Aloha,” starring Bradley Cooper and Emma Stone.

Woody Harrelson will be starring as the legendary Adm. Chester Nimitz, who, with the help of innovative U.S. codebreakers, foiled a Japanese ambush at Midway on June 4, 1942, less than a month after the conclusion of the Battle of the Coral Sea.

Luke Evans (“Beauty and the Beast,” “Professor Marston and the Wonder Women”) will star as Cmdr. Wade McClusky, who received the Navy Cross for his actions during the Battle of Midway. Mandy Moore and Patrick Wilson have also been confirmed for roles in the film, which is expected to be released sometime in late 2019.

Navy officials have emphasized that Emmerich and crew, a team that includes Mark Gordon, who assisted with the production of “Saving Private Ryan,” “are dead-set on making sure it’s a historically accurate [film],” the Star-Advertiser reported. Last month, a call went out for local military members and their families to serve as extras in the film, a request that received almost 1,500 responses.

Filming is also expected to take place in Canada, among other potential locations.

Knowing when and where the enemy planned to attack in June 1942 allowed Adm. Nimitz to dispatch the carriers Enterprise, Hornet and Yorktown to ambush the unsuspecting Japanese navy. Aircraft from the three U.S. ships would wind up sinking four of Japan’s lead carriers, a devastating blow that decimated Japanese dominance at sea and allowed U.S. forces to go on the offensive in the Pacific.

The Yorktown was damaged in the Battle of the Coral Sea and limped into Pearl Harbor only eight days before Midway. But with battle imminent, she was quickly patched up and prepared for a fight after 1,400 shipyard workers spent 72 hours readying the carrier, according to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

“There are few moments in American history in which the course of events tipped so suddenly and so dramatically as at the Battle of Midway,” author Craig Symonds wrote in his book, “The Battle of Midway.” “At dawn of June 4, 1942, a rampaging Japanese navy ruled the Pacific. By sunset, their vaunted carrier force (the Kido Butai) had been sunk and their grip on the Pacific had been loosened forever.”


==============================================

A pal run this www site about abandoned airfields:

http://www.airfields-freeman.c..._Pacific.htm#eastern

Woody Harrelson, the one who was on TV at the beginning of Desert Storm calling for those of us on aircraft carriers to sabotage the catapults thereby not allowing the bad war to happen against the good people of Iraq.

I remember him...now he's going to star in a war movie. hmmmm

He's a hypocritical fuck. Unfortunately, most of Hollyweird is, and Harrelson has been entertaining in a lot of roles, and I'll probably see this movie based on the premise alone.

I'll wait for some reviews here before seeing it. I've been disappointed too many times with other remakes.

Jim

I enjoyed the original movie, and am very familiar with the story and history. When Eastwood produced the movie about Iwo Jima from the Japanese point of view, that was of interest. I don't see that sort of thing was this film.

There are so many other battles and stories that have not been told.

Given the Michael Bay/Ben Afleck abortion called Pearl Harbor, I will withhold any judgment or, praise. Hollywood has a history of f'ing up military battles, engagements and topics in the interest of creating art or, creative license.

There's no art in history, either do it right, or, don't do it at all.

At $100m that ain't much of a budget. Navy Times you're a bunch of idiots to refer to that as a blockbuster. Not sure what kind of CGI they're going to be able to generate with that kind of budget. To recreate the IJN Kido Butai let alone the US fleet, is gonna take some genius archival research and CGI work. Are they also going to include Yamamoto's fleet to include the Yamato? There's likely a call for every Wildcat, Dauntless, Devestator in existence and who knows how many flyable Zero's or Kate's there are... How are they going to portray Fletcher...the original Midway movie made him look like a chump, when in fact he was just as big a hero as Spruance.

The original Midway movie had a 'love interest' story (Charlton Heston's son was in love with a Japanese/American internee), but it didn't dominate the story. The original 1976 movie is one of my top 5 favorite war movies of all time.

This one will be a disappointment, no matter how good the CGI is.

So we have a certifiable fuckup in Woody Harrelson AND we get Roland Emmerich? Not a chance...

Will be interesting to see the full casting. Hard to beat the original all star cast.

Emmerich did direct the Patriot, so, who knows?

Uncertain how he can improve on the film's historical accuracy. The original was pretty close.

We will see. BUT I know this is heresy on the Forum but I do not think the original has aged well. I remember seeing it in the theater as a kid and loving it. But now the tacked on love story and the Executive Order 9066 angle seem well tacked on. Hal Holbrook's portrayal as the Commander of the signals intel group seems a bit odd to me know. I most likely will be more satisfied browsing YouTube for Midway content then seeing this remake. But I think a there is case to be made for a remake.

Ha, woody harrelson as Adm, Nimitz. I wouldn't watch him if he was playing some dumb hick bartender. Surely they can find better actors beside these America hating, Military hating assholes.

quote:

Political views
Harrelson identifies as an anarchist. In a conversation with Howard Zinn, Harrelson admitted that he considers Zinn to be a personal hero of his. In 2002, Harrelson wrote an article in the British newspaper The Guardian condemning President George W. Bush's preparation for a US invasion of Iraq as a "racist and imperialist war". He also stated that he was against the USA's previous war in Iraq and President Bill Clinton's sanctions against Iraq.

quote:

Originally posted by detroit192:Hal Holbrook's portrayal as the Commander of the signals intel group seems a bit odd to me know.

Why is that?
Joe Rochefort was an eccentric, non-Annapolis grad who rubbed the establishment; Holbrook's portrayal, non-bathing and bathrobe w/khakis was accurate. Like Admiral Fletcher, Rochefort was jobbed-out of post-war recognition and down played in the immediate history writing after war. Nimitz had his recommendation to award him the Distinguished Service Medal denied TWICE, it was finally awarded to him 10-years after he died in '86.

Roland Emmerich.... pass

Just watched it....Tom Selleck is in it!

He's on Midway, no mustache, wearing a old WWI helmet, he's the aide to the commander of the island.

quote:

Originally posted by icom706:
Will be interesting to see the full casting. Hard to beat the original all star cast.
.

Krappernick will be in it. He and Harrelson take a knee every morning during colors because being called "colors" is racist.