Michael Buckner for Variety
Tom Hanks And Gary Goetzman have enjoyed an unbeatable streak at the Emmy Awards so far, with all five of their limited series and made-for-TV movies winning in the top category. Now they team up again with Steven Spielberg for the third time for their Apple TV+ limited series “Masters of the Air,” in association with their production company Playtone and Spielberg’s Amblin Television. The nine-episode program centers on members of the 100th Bombardment Group during World War II in England, and features Austin Butler, Callum Turner, Anthony Boyle And Barry Keoghan in an ensemble cast, serving as a companion piece to their Emmy-winning war miniseries “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific.” With their HBO shows totaling a total of 92 nominations and 41 wins, let’s look back at the duo’s Emmy history to determine possible nominations in the “Masters of the Air” category.
“Band of Brothers” (2001)
Their first World War II story with Spielberg was the 2001 dramatization of “Easy” Company Soldiers, “Band of Brothers,” based on the film. Stephen E. Ambroise book, and also featuring a large ensemble led by Damien Lewis And Ron Livingston. The 10-episode miniseries won seven Emmy Awards from 20 nominations, receiving mentions in every technical and major category in the miniseries/TV movie genre at the 2002 Emmys except for acting; winner of Best Miniseries, Directing, Casting, Editing, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and a newly created honorary category for Best Interactive Television Programming.
“John Adams” (2008)
Six years later, the duo adapts the 2001 David McCullough book “John Adams” in a seven-part biographical series about the second president of the United States and his role as a founding father. With famous stars like Paul Giamatti, Laura Linney And Tom Wilkinson Headlining the cast, the miniseries had much more success in the acting categories with all three Emmy trophies won in their respective races, while also succeeding in the Best Miniseries, Writing, Directing categories. Artistic, Casting, Cinematography, Costumes, Prosthetic Makeup, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and Special Visual Effects, totaling 13 wins among their 23 main nominations.
“The Pacific” (2010)
Returning to World War II and exploring the Pacific theater of operations during the Pacific War, “The Pacific” is adapted from two memoirs by Eugene Sledge And Robert Leckie. The 2010 series comprised of 10 hour-long chapters – produced once again by Spielberg alongside Hanks and Goetzman – performed extremely well and similarly to “Band of Brothers” at the Emmys, leading the ceremony with 24 nominations and winning a third of their haul. with Best Miniseries, Art Direction, Casting, Prosthetic Makeup, Non-Prosthetic Makeup, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and Special Visual Effects.
“Game Change” (2012)
When it comes to modern government, “Game Change” is the only TV movie made by both producers, depicting the 2008 presidential election campaign. John McCainrevolving around his running mate Sarah Palin. 2012 was the first of two years in which the Emmys combined films and miniseries in the same top category, but that didn’t stop the political drama from becoming one of its five triumphs of the evening among its 12 nominations , alongside that of best screenplay, direction, casting and main actress for Julianne Moore as governor of Alaska.
“Olive Kitteridge” (2014)
2015 was a year of change for the Emmy Awards which brought many changes, including renaming the program category from Best Miniseries to Best Limited Series and expanding the voting body, making “Olive Kitteridge” the most successful show produced by Hanks and Goetzman, sweeping all but one category during the main telecast and ultimately landing eight of its 13 nominations. The four-episode installment based on the 2008 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Elizabeth Strout won Best Limited Series and Lead Actress for Frances McDormandmain actor of Richard Jenkinsactor in a supporting role for Bill MurrayWriting, directing, casting and editing.
So what does this tell us about “Masters of the Air”? Given the historical war genre and Hanks and Goetzman’s collaboration with Spielberg, it’s probably more accurate to look at “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific” as a benchmark, both of which dominated the Creative Arts Emmys. Thus, it is almost certain that this series will be recognized (and will be in the running to win) in categories such as sound, cinematography, editing, casting, costumes, makeup, hairstyling, art direction, music, main title design, special visual effects. and/or waterfalls.
However, despite their overwhelming score, the previous two war dramas did not receive any acting credits. That could change with “Masters of the Air,” as it boasts a more visible and recognizable cast with recent Oscar nominees Butler and Keoghan and Tony nominee Boyle — such notoriety has been effective for the other three programs by Hanks and Goetzman. Additionally, the large ensemble cast can work to the series’ benefit in the casting category for a nomination, which largely correlates to determining Best Limited Series, as well as writing and directing ( the offers received by the two companion pieces), the latter being which is directed by the Emmy favorites Cary Joji Fukunaga, Tim Van Patten, Dee Rees and the director duo Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck.
As the combined Gold Derby odds for best limited series stand, “Masters of the Air” is just sneaking into the category, currently in fifth place with odds of 10/1, with 613 users predicting that Hanks and Goetzman will continue their nomination streak. But a victory would be more difficult given the large number of contenders in the genre, with only 29 forecast to go undefeated. Still, one thing to remember in the popular vote era of the television academy is that if voters like the show, they will ultimately watch it and that may prove to be the case for “The Masters of the Air” with the commitment of great confirmed talents. It would be unusual for the Emmys to ignore a project produced by Hanks and Goetzman as well as Spielberg, so “Masters of the Air” is definitely one to watch.
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