Summary

• Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks have a shared fascination with World War II, which has resulted in some of their best collaborative work on screen and behind the scenes.
• Their first collaboration as director and actor, Saving Private Ryan, is considered one of the best war movies ever, and it won several awards, including an Oscar for Best Director for Spielberg.
• They continued their exploration of World War II with the critically acclaimed miniseries Band of Brothers, which is not only the best TV show about World War II but also one of the best military TV shows of all time. Since then, they've made two more World War II miniseries together, including one that will be released in 2024.

Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks have always made a great team, especially when it comes to telling World War II stories, and they're returning to this monumental time in history once again with a new miniseries. As a director and actor pair, Spielberg and Hanks have made many movies together, including Saving Private Ryan, Catch Me If You Can, The Terminal, Bridge of Spies, and The Post. They've also collaborated as producers on the TV series Band of Brothers and The Pacific.

Spielberg and Hanks are at their best when they explore World War II in their work together. Their shared fascination with this historical time period has delivered some of their best collaborative work, both with Hanks performing on screen and Spielberg behind the camera, but also as t forces behind the scenes. Their combined knack for telling authentic stories of World War II soldiers' experiences dates all the way back to the first time they ever worked closely together as a director and actor duo.

Steven Spielberg & Tom Hanks' Saving Private Ryan Is One Of The Best WW2 Movies Ever

Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks's first-ever collaboration as a director and actor ended up producing some of their best work. Directed by Spielberg, Saving Private Ryan premiered in 1998, with Hanks in the lead role as Captain John Miller. After three brothers are killed in battle during World War II, and the fourth, Private James Francis Ryan (played by Matt Damon) is declared missing, Miller and his troops set out on a mission across to locate Private Ryan and bring him to safety.

Saving Private Ryan remains one of the best war movies of all time, along with Spielberg's other World War II masterpiece, Schindler's List. The critically acclaimed film won several awards, including five Academy Awards, including one for Best Director for Spielberg. It was also nominated for Best Picture, and Hanks was nominated for Best Actor. Following Saving Private Ryan, the pair went on to work together for decades to come, but their very next collaboration was yet another World War II tale in the form of a 2001 miniseries.

Related: 10 Most Accurate WW2 Movies, Ranked

Steven Spielberg & Tom Hanks' Band Of Brothers Is The Best WW2 TV Show Ever

Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks continued their exploration of World War II in the 2001 HBO miniseries Band of Brothers, this time with both of them behind the scenes as producers. Band of Brothers is based on the nonfiction book by historian Steven A. Ambrose, whose work also informed the conceptualization of Saving Private Ryan. Band of Brothers is a dramatization of the experiences of Easy Company, part of the 2nd Battalion of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment assigned to the 101st Airborne Division. Band of Brothers stars Damian Lewis, Scott Grimes, and Ron Livingston. Tom Hanks's son, Colin Hanks, also had a role as First Lieutenant Henry S. Jones.

The series was co-created by Spielberg and Hanks, both of whom served as executive producers. Hanks co-wrote the first episode, "Currahee," with showrunner Erik Jendresen, and directed episode 5, "Crossroads," in which he also made a cameo as a British officer. Band of Brothers won Best Miniseries at both the Primetime Emmy Awards and the Golden Globe Awards. Not only is it the best TV show about World War II, but it also tops the list of the best military TV shows of all time.

Related: Every Band Of Brothers Episode, Ranked From Worst To Best

In 2010, another HBO miniseries about World War II was released, serving as a "companion piece" to Band of Brothers. Spearheaded by Band of Brothers writer Bruce C. McKenna, The Pacific focuses on the United States Marine Corps during the Pacific War. Spielberg and Hanks served as executive producers, and Hanks even narrated the prelude segments of a number of episodes. In some ways, if not completely, Band of Brothers is better than The Pacific.

Related: Every The Pacific Episode, Ranked Worst To Best

Spielberg & Hanks' World War 2 Streak Will Continue In 2024 With Masters of the Air

In 2024, Band of Brothers and The Pacific are getting another "companion piece" with Masters of the Air cast includes Austin Butler, Barry Keoghan, and Callum Turner.

Note: The first two episodes of Masters of the Air will be released on Apple TV+ on January 26, 2024.

While its focus is on a unit from a different branch of the U.S. Military, If Masters of the Air depicts this battle, it's possible that the 100th Bombardment will have some direct with Band of Brothers' Easy Company. This would bring Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks's World War II collaborations almost full circle.