"Overlord" (out now on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD and Digital) is a perfectly trashy World War II thriller. Nazi scientists have been experimenting on French resistance fighters in a failed attempt to breed a race of super soldiers.
Instead, they've created zombies. Disgusting, vicious and incredibly violent zombies. Just before D-Day, a team of American paratroopers is sent behind the lines to cut off German communications in preparation for Operation Overlord's big day.
Once director Julius Avery and producer J.J. Abrams added zombies to their WWII movie, they decided historical accuracy was already out the window and they'd cast anyone they liked.
Related: 'Overlord': Does Historical Accuracy Matter Once You Put Zombies in Your WWII Movie?
The team is led by Sgt. Rensin (Bokeem Woodbine), and the two lead Army characters are Pvt. Boyce (Jovan Adepo) and Cpl. Ford (Wyatt Russell). Their Nazi nemesis, Capt. Wafner, is played by Pilou Asbæk ("A War"), and their French resistance fighter guide Chloe is newcomer Mathilde Ollivier.
Both Adepo and Woodbine are African-American. Since black and white soldiers couldn't serve in the same unit until 1948, it's a kick to see an integrated World War II movie.
Adepo sat with us for an interview. He talked about the training the cast did for "Overlord," that spectacular parachute jump and what it was like to audition for a role that had never before been available to guys like him.
![](http://images01.military.com/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail_large/public/2024-11/1time%20evan%20thompson%20real%20american%201200.jpg?itok=_Q-k99Ln "Evan Thompson and his flag at his home in Beatty, Nevada, in the new film "The Real American." (I.F. Productions)")
