World War II has always been a popular topic for movies. Most recently we saw Christopher Nolan's take on the rescue at Dunkirk, next we're going to get a movie about the climactic Battle of Midway. Lionsgate just made a deal with director Roland Emmerich to distribute the project which will tell the story of the aerial battle which is viewed as the turning point of the Pacific theater during the war.
With Roland Emmerich behind the production, one expects that Midway will be a fairly spectacular action blockbuster. Emmerich is the man behind the likes of Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow. One might be inclined to compare it more to another infamous World War II movie, Michael Bay's Pearl Harbor, though, according to Deadline, Midway will deal with the real soldiers and aviators who were involved in the battle, so it looks like the plan is to tell a story which is a bit more grounded in the reality of the event. The film is based on a script written by Wes Tooke, who will be making his feature film debut, having previously written episodes of the USA series Colony.
Whether or not the success of Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk specifically led to the interest over Midway is unclear, but it can't be entirely overlooked. Dunkirk made almost a half billion dollars at the global box office, including nearly $200 million domestically, which is impressive, considering the Dunkirk evacuation was an event most Americans weren't necessarily familiar with, as it took place prior to US entry into the war. The Battle of Midway, however, is likely to resonate more with an American audience as it was an American battle.
The air combat of Midway certainly lends itself to a massive action movie which appears to be the sort of film that Midway is going to be. Maybe we're in for something of a World War II era Top Gun, which, all things considered, isn't the worst idea for a film. World War II was when we learned about the importance of aerial superiority in warfare, so a movie about how that came about could be interesting as well as exciting.
The Battle of Midway took place in June of 1942 and is viewed by historians as being a decisive battle in the war. The damage the American fleet did to Japan during the four days of the battle was significant and Japan was never able to recover from it. Coming only six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor it was a major win for the Allies.
Since the deal for financing is just being put together, the film is looking at a budget of at least $100 million, it's a bit early to have any idea when we might actually see Midway on screen, but stay tuned with CinemaBlend and we'll have details as they continue to emerge.
