Cuba Gooding Jr. and Terrence Howard Lead Way in Lucasfilm's 'Red Tails'

Lucas's long gestating project is finally ready to fly

By: Brad Brevet
Published: Monday, April 6th 2009 at 3:34 PM

The only bad thing about daytime screenings is occasionally missing news when it breaks as I was unfortunately out when a press release arrived announcing the cast and upcoming production start for Red Tails, a fictional story inspired by the historic and heroic exploits of America's first all black aerial combat unit to be directed by Anthony Hemingway ("The Wire") and written by John Ridley (Three Kings) from a story by executive producer George Lucas.

Principal photography will take place in Europe with cast made up of Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard, Bryan Cranston, Nate Parker, David Oyelowo, Tristan Wilds, Method Man, Kevin Phillips, Rick Otto, Lee Tergesen, Andre Royo, Ne-Yo, Elijah Kelley, Marcus T. Paulk, Leslie Odom Jr., Michael B. Jordan, Jazmine Sullivan, Edwina Finley, Daniela Ruah and Stacie Davis. Of the bunch five come from the hit TV show "The Wire" in which Hemingway served as first director on 23 episodes.

Quoted in the release George Lucas said, "I've been wanting to do Red Tails for 20 years, and we've finally got the means to showcase the skill of the Tuskegee pilots. We're working on techniques which will give us the first true look at the aerial dogfighting of the era. And our top-notch cast will really make this story special."

There is currently no set release date. The synopsis reads as follows.

1944. World War II rages and the fate of the free world hangs in the balance.

Meanwhile the black pilots of the experimental Tuskegee training program are courageously waging two wars at once – one against enemies overseas, and the other against discrimination within the military and back home. Racial prejudices have long held ace airman Martin "Easy" Julian (Nate Parker) and his black pilots back at base – leaving them with little to do but further hone their flying skills – while their white counterparts are shipped out to combat after a mere three months of training. Mistakenly deemed inferior and assigned only second-rate planes and missions, the pilots of Tuskegee have mastered the skies with ease but have not been granted the opportunity to truly spread their wings.

Until now.

As the war in Europe continues to take its dire toll on Allied forces, Pentagon brass has no recourse but to reconsider these under-utilized pilots for combat duty. Just as the young Tuskegee men are on the brink of being shut down and shipped back home, Col. A.J. Bullard (Terrence Howard) awards them the ultimate chance to prove their mettle high above. Undaunted by the prospect of providing safe escort to bombers in broad daylight – a mission so dangerous that the RAF has refused it and the white fighter groups have sustained substantial losses – Easy's pilots at last join the fiery aerial fray. Against all the odds, with something to prove and everything to lose, these intrepid young airmen take to the skies in a heroic endeavor to combat the enemy – and the discrimination that has kept them down for so long.

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