Korean War Movie 'Devotion' Will Tell an Epic Story of Friendship and Courage

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Ensign Jesse L. Brown, USN In the cockpit of an F4U-4 Corsair fighter, circa 1950. He was the first African-American Naval Aviator to see combat. Brown was shot down over North Korea. (National Archives)
Ensign Jesse L. Brown, USN In the cockpit of an F4U-4 Corsair fighter, circa 1950. He was the first African-American Naval Aviator to see combat. Brown was shot down over North Korea. (National Archives)

"Devotion," a movie drama about the real-life friendship between Navy aviators Jesse Brown and Tom Hudner, is now set for a fall release that will put the movie right in the middle of awards season.

Based on Adam Makos' bestselling book, "Devotion: An Epic Story of Heroism, Friendship, and Sacrifice," the movie will chronicle Brown and Hudner's friendship in the days leading to the December 1950 battle at Chosin Reservoir.

Brown's plane was shot down on Dec. 4, and Hudner then crashed his own plane in an attempt to rescue his friend. Brown, the first Black aviator in the Navy, didn't survive that day, but Hudner was later awarded the Medal of Honor for his attempts to save his friend and fellow aviator.

The movie stars Jonathan Majors ("Da 5 Bloods," "Lovecraft Country") as Brown, and Glen Powell, soon to be seen as Hangman in "Top Gun: Maverick," plays Hudner. The movie also stars Joe Jonas ("The Righteous Gemstones"), Joseph Cross ("Flags of Our Fathers"), Thomas Sadoski ("Life in Pieces") and Christina Jackson ("Outsiders").

Powell read the book and brought it to the producers at Black Label Media, the company behind the Afghanistan war movie "12 Strong," firefighter drama "Only the Brave" and both "Sicario" movies. The producers hired J.D. Dillard, the young director who made a fascinating debut with "Sleight" in 2016 and seems ready to make the leap to big-time features. "Devotion" was filmed in Savannah, Georgia, in the spring of 2021.

"Devotion" will get a limited release in big cities like New York and Los Angeles on Oct. 14, 2022, a few more cities added on Oct. 21 and a wide release everywhere on Oct. 28. This kind of marketing plan is a sign that Sony really believes in this film. A staged fall release often means that a studio believes it has a possible Oscar movie on its hands, and the slower rollout will build word of mouth before a movie's release.

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