Roland Emmerich to direct Midway based on the famous WWII battle
At the Cannes Film Festival today, it was announced that Roland Emmerich (Independence Day) is set to direct the upcoming film Midway. The film will be based on the true story of World War II’s Battle of Midway. The battle was a turning point in the Pacific theater of the war and the film “follows the real soldiers and aviators who pulled off the unbelievable to turn the tide of the war.”
The script for Midway was written by Wes Tooke (Colony), who is the writer and producer for USA Network’s upcoming series Jean-Claude Van Johnson. The film will be produced by Yu Dong from Bona Film Group, Mark Gordon and Matt Jackson from the Mark Gordon Company, alongside Harald Kloser and Emmerich. Josh Clay Phillips will oversee the project on behalf of MGC.
The Battle of Midway was a naval battle that took place between June 4 and June 7, 1942, six months after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. The United States Navy defeated a fleet from the Imperial Japanese Navy, making it impossible to recover completely. On the American side, the effort was lead by Admirals Chester Nimitz, Frank Jack Fletcher, and Raymond A. Spruance. On the Japanese side, it was lead by Admirals Isoroku Yamamoto, Chuichi Nagumo, and Nobutake Kondo. The battle took place near Midway Atoll.
Emerich is best known for disaster films like 1994’s Stargate, 1996’s Independence Day, 1998’s Godzilla, 2004’s The Day After Tomorrow, 2009’s 2012 and last year’s Independence Day: Resurgence. He also worked on the TV series The Visitor. Emmerich and Gordon worked together on The Day After Tomorrow and 2012.
What do you guys think of Emmerich directing Midway? Are you excited for the film? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or tweet us @ComingSoonnet.
(Photo by JB Lacroix/WireImage)
