In a desperate attempt to defeat their allied enemies, Germany relies on their navy and U-boats for a mission to attack the United States in the closing days of World War II. They enlist Captain Hans Kessler (Dolph Lundgren) to lead the mission, which takes on Commander Race Ingram (Frank Grillo) and Captain Samuel L Gravely Jr. (Hiram A. Murray).
Also in the cast of Operation Seawolf are Andrew Stecker, Apostolos Gliarmis, Luke Steinborn, Aaron Courteau, Edgar Damatian, Bates Wilder, Cody Fleury and more. It was written and directed by Steven Luke and available in theaters and on demand from October 7, 2022, before a digital release later on October 25.
“I am most excited for the public to take away understanding of the commonality of the human mindset, of what it takes for a person in their position, leading to battle decisions, and the commonality of both. sides, be it a villain or a hero, what it takes to issue orders or make decisions,” Murray said.
Operation Seawolf is a character driven story
“It’s a very character-driven piece,” Luke noted. “Obviously in a WWII movie you have to have your action and explosions, but it’s really about the men on both sides, the decisions they make to complete their missions and hopefully get home, and I’m excited for the public to see that and go on these characters’ journeys.”
While developing these characters, Luke welcomed feedback from his cast and noted that Lundgren helped develop Captain Hans Kessler.
“Dolph Lundgren, who stars as Hans Kessler, the captain of the German submarine…I got the idea and sent the story in, and he loved it, and he really wanted to dive into this character and help develop who Kessler We immediately had a human story that we wanted to tell,” said Luke.
This intent to tell a human story is also common in Murray’s role as Captain Samuel L Gravely Jr., as the character was a real person, with the addition of Murray’s background as a Captain in the Marine Corps.
“My character, that’s a real dude, was the very first African-American naval officer, and also the first African-American admiral. He was actually in command of the ship we were filming on. Myself, as a captain in the Marine Corps, it was one of the highest honors of my career to take on this role because this is just like my ancestor. If he wasn’t there, I wouldn’t be there. This man came and paved the way for African Americans to become officers in the military,” Murray said.
Historical Accuracy of Operation Seawolf
Since he was studying history at school, Luke made a conscious effort to Operational Seawolf as historically accurate as he could, which heightened Murray’s sense of pride and will to do things right.
“Getting all the details right, the story, the costumes, the shooting, the ships… it was super important to be able to recreate that environment. I always try to teach everyone that if we pay attention to the historical details, our audience will reward us. It’ll keep them in the story, they’ll feel like they’ve come forward in what we’re trying to create,” Luke said.
“The audience, they’ll look and say, ‘Wait a minute, an all-African American ship?’ but that was true at the time,” Murray added, then went on to explain how that, as well as his life experience as a captain in the Marine Corps, affected his performance. “It’s a sense of pride, and you want to do well because you you represent the veteran community, you represent the african american community, you portray a real person, you represent his legacy and his family, so those things that you always have in the back of your mind, in every scene, with how you speak and your command and presence Those things are always in the back of your mind and you always want to do them justice.”
Also in Operation Seawolf is Murray’s son Seth. “That’s one of my proudest moments in my career,” Murray said, “and one of the happiest things I’ll always remember about this movie, being able to share it with my kid.”
Operation Seawolf comes to us from Call! Studios.