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The highly anticipated World War II drama Masters of the Air premiered on Apple TV+ on January 26, 2024. The first two episodes premiered on the streaming platform with the remaining episodes scheduled to have a weekly release subsequently.
The official logline of the series reads:
"During WWII, five miles above the ground and behind enemy lines, ten men inside a bomber known as a "Flying Fortress" battle unrelenting flocks of German fighters."
The limited miniseries is based on the book Masters of the Air: America’s Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany by Donald L. Miller. Masters of the Air, which is produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks, is expected to be an intricate and thrilling portrayal of a pivotal period in military history. The drama series will center on the exploits of the US Army Air Forces' 100th Bomb Group, also referred to as the "Bloody Hundredth."
Apple TV+'s Masters of the Air has been produced on a budget of around $250 - $300 million
Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Gary Goetzman are the primary producers of the series and this is the third time that the trio has teamed up to develop a World War II series. The trio previously worked together on the 2001 film Band of Brothers and its follow-up 2010 television series The Pacific.
Deadline had initially reported that Masters of the Air is being produced with a total budget exceeding $200 million. The Hollywood Reporter later confirmed that the series has a total production budget of around $250 to $300 million.
The budget is massive for a television series and exceeds the budget of some special effects heavy and star-studded blockbuster films like Captain Marvel ($220 Million) and Spider-Man: No Way Home ($200 million). The budget for each episode of the series can be estimated to be around $27 million to $33 million on average.
The whopping budget can only be justified once audiences watch the entire series and give their verdict on it. Masters of the Air has a star-studded cast including the likes of Austin Butler (Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, Elvis), Barry Keoghan (Dunkirk, Saltburn), Callum Turner (Queen and Country, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore), and Ncuti Gatwa (S*x Education, Doctor Who) among others.
The massive budget of the film can be attributed to the ensemble cast of actors who must have all received generous paychecks for their roles in the Apple TV+ series.
Another reason for the heavy budget is the requirement for the recreation of vintage settings in an accurate manner. From the looks of the trailer, the series is a visual delight and there are scenes with fighter jets in the air above the clouds, bombarded cities (which have been recreated beautifully), and gritty imagery from the battlefields. The recreation of sets and filming across various locations can be a major reason for the inflated budget.
Steven Spielberg is known for creating some of the most elaborate and detailed scenes in Hollywood and as one of the primary producers for Masters of the Air, it is no surprise that the budget is one of the highest ever for a television series.
The first two episodes of Masters of the Air are currently available for streaming on Apple TV+. The rest of the episodes will be released on the streaming platform weekly.
