The Pacific (miniseries)

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The Pacific
Directed by	Carl Franklin Tim Van Patten Graham Yost Jeremy Podeswa Tony To^[1]
Produced by	Steven Spielberg Tom Hanks Gary Goetzman
Written by	Robert Leckie (book) Eugene Sledge (book) Bruce McKenna
Starring	James Badge Dale Jon Seda Joe Mazzello
Distributed by	HBO
Release date(s)	2009
Running time	approx. 600 min. (10 parts)
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$200,000,000 (reported)
Preceded by	Band of Brothers
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

The Pacific is a World War II television drama mini-series, produced by HBO, which is currently in development. It is the successor to Band of Brothers. Whereas Band of Brothers focused on United States involvement in the European Theater of Operations, the new series will be about the Pacific Theater of Operations. The Pacific will not be associated with any of the characters from Band of Brothers and is to be based primarily on two memoirs of U.S. Marines: With the Old Breed by Eugene Sledge and Helmet for My Pillow by Robert Leckie.^[2] The series will tell the stories of the two authors and Marine John Basilone, as the war against the Empire of Japan rages.

The Pacific is being spearheaded by Bruce McKenna, who was one of the main writers on Band of Brothers. Hugh Ambrose, the son of Band of Brothers author Stephen Ambrose, will serve as a project consultant. ^[2]

1 Production
2 Storyline
3 Cast
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Production

Production of the series started in August 2007, in Australia. Filming locations will include in and around Port Douglas, Queensland and both Melbourne and rural Victoria.^[3] The series has a budget of more than US$200 million and the series is thought to be the most expensive ever made in Australia. While the producers – HBO, Playtone and Dreamworks – have not made an official comment about The Pacific, they have set up a production office in Melbourne and commenced casting. The Seven Network will also help out with the production.^[4]

[edit] Storyline

The Pacific will draw on several sources of material, including Eugene Sledge's With the Old Breed and Robert Leckie's Helmet for My Pillow.

Hugh Ambrose, son of the late historian Stephen Ambrose, will serve as a consultant on the project; Stephen Ambrose's book of the same name was the source material for Band of Brothers.

The Pacific follows the stories of the two authors, as well as that of fellow Marine John Basilone, as they fight against Japan across the Pacific.

Given the literary sources mentioned above, the series will feature well-known battles involving the 1st Marine Division, such as Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Peleliu, and Okinawa, as well as Basilone's involvement in the Battle of Iwo Jima.