Space Force's Enlisted Leader Seeks Hollywood Star Power to Put Guardians on Screen

A punch line. That seemed to be Hollywood's take on the newly formed Space Force in 2020 when Netflix launched a short-lived comedy series of the same name -- a spoof without any real input from the service.

Fast-forward to this year. Patrick Space Force Base, Florida, was used in the filming of the newly released movie "Fly Me to the Moon" about the 1960s space race, starring big-name actors Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson and Woody Harrelson.

The service is now seeking to embrace Hollywood as an ally -- as other branches have done to great effect in movies such as "Top Gun" and "Black Hawk Down" -- and use that relationship to showcase its mission to the public on its own terms. The effort is being spearheaded by Chief Master Sergeant of the Space Force John Bentivegna, the service's top enlisted leader.

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On Tuesday, Bentivegna was at the Fox Studio Lot in California, where he explained Guardians' crucial mission to nearly 20 Hollywood directors and executives. Notable attendees included Jerry and Janet Zucker, famous directors and producers of films such as "Airplane!", "The Naked Gun" and "Friends with Benefits."

Bentivegna, who addressed the group of creatives donned in his sci-fi-inspired dress uniform, explained the Space Force's mission isn't to fight aliens, hunt Sith Lords or put combat boots on the moon. In the real world, it's about securing America's interests against China and Russia, protecting the nation's use of GPS, and tracking orbital debris to keep it from harming assets such as the International Space Station.

All those are also compelling for movie plots, he believes.

"Whether it be "Star Trek," "Star Wars," the Netflix show -- there's some pop culture that is kind of thrown at the Space Force, which in good nature we're going to embrace," Bentivegna said in an interview Tuesday with Military.com. "I think it is a significant turning point that there's more realization that the service is a part of the Department of Defense. It is a real thing, and we're doing vital and critical work for the nation."

Military experts who spoke with Military.com agree that the Space Force's new landing zone on the red carpet marks a significant milestone for the service.

In a video shared on social media this month -- well before the Space Force's fifth anniversary coming up on Dec. 20 -- Hollywood superstar Johansson smiled and wished the service a happy birthday.

"Happy fifth birthday, Space Force Guardians! Your dedication to secure our nation's interests in, from, and to space is truly inspiring. Here's to five amazing years and many more to come!" she said, concluding the message with the service's motto "Semper Supra!"

Todd Harrison, a senior fellow at the nonprofit American Enterprise Institute who focuses on defense strategy and space policy and security, told Military.com that that type of star power is huge for the service branch, which is by far the smallest with a little over 9,000 Guardians.

"I think it does represent a bit of a turning point where the Space Force is essentially teaming with a movie, which gives it some pop-cultural acceptance, if you will," Harrison said. "The fact that you've got A-list celebrities like Scarlett Johansson even talking about the Space Force, talking about its birthday, its anniversary coming up, that does a lot to give the Space Force the recognition it deserves as an independent military service."

However, Harrison adds that "Fly Me to the Moon" -- a romantic comedy-drama -- could also lend to some confusion among the public with its setting in the space race of the 1960s. The Space Force is not NASA, despite what some in the public might think, and while the service branch is not featured in the story, it has been involved with the premiere and promotion of the film.

Bentivegna was part of a panel during the premiere in July where he spoke about the important work Guardians do.

He told Military.com he wasn't concerned about any misconceptions of the roles Space Force and NASA play due to "Fly Me to the Moon" and pointed out that some partnerships exist between the two, including that a Guardian officer is set to be the first member in the service's history to launch into space in August.

"When you talk about the confusion ... between NASA, which is a civil agency that is focused on exploration, science and technology, and then the Space Force, which is a part of the Department of Defense, I think we did a pretty good job." Bentivegna said. "There is a symbiotic relationship between the space domain awareness mission, if you will, and the mission of NASA to make sure human spaceflight is safe."

But there are other obstacles the service faces in portraying its mission on the silver screen. The Space Force's operations are highly classified and, often, out of sight.

While the public can see an F-35 in the sky, a Marine crawling through the San Diego sand or an Army Humvee convoying on the highway, Guardians are rarely spotted doing their jobs outside their secretive installations.

Katherine Kuzminski, the director of the Military, Veterans and Society Program at the Center for a New American Security think tank, told Military.com that it's on the service to increase that transparency so there is no confusion -- such as the unrealistic plots portrayed in the Netflix series -- over what Guardians do.

"The challenge for the Space Force is that they operate at a level of classification that's much higher than we see across the other services, and so it's on them to get the message out, as opposed to letting Hollywood kind of define what their role is," Kuzminski said. "I think because the [Netflix] show came out first, that was the broad understanding across the civilian population, even though it didn't reflect reality."

Every service branch has its major movie that cements its legacy into the cultural zeitgeist, whether it's "A Few Good Men," "Memphis Belle," "We Were Soldiers," or the box-office smash "Top Gun" movies starring Tom Cruise as a Navy fighter pilot, which drew notable attention and recruiting interest for pilots in the military.

Bentivegna said he's not chasing the Space Force's "Top Gun" moment, but in due time he thinks that movie will find them when the service is ready.

"At this point, I think that each opportunity, whether it be a Guardian in the background of a cameo shot or of a side plot of another movie, but that the Space Force is depicted and represented in more of an accurate way and not necessarily relying back to those stereotypes of what the service is, those are all wins for us," Bentivegna said. "Whenever we get to the 'Top Gun' moment, hey, that'll be great, but I'm not necessarily looking to chase that."

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