Inside Ben Stiller’s WWII Survival Epic 'The Lost Airman' — Is a Hollywood Heavyweight About to Lead?
From comedy roots to wartime grit, Stiller surprises again.
It’s always intriguing when comedians reveal a different side of their craft. Many remain in one lane, but when they take risks, the results can be striking — Jim Carrey in Eternal Sunshine proved that, didn’t he? Now Ben Stiller makes a similar leap.
His next project, The Lost Airman, marks his first feature as director since Zoolander 2 in 2015, and it takes him far from comedy into the grit of WWII survival.
From Catwalks to Combat
After reinventing himself on television with Severance, Stiller is stepping away from its third season to tackle this new challenge.
Based on Seth Meyerowitz’s book, The Lost Airman follows Arthur Meyerowitz, a U.S. gunner shot down over Vichy France in 1943. Hidden by the Resistance and pursued by the Gestapo, he endured months in hiding before a daring escape aided by decorated British pilot R.F.W. Cleaver. Quite the shift from Zoolander, don’t you agree?
A Star in Waiting
Jake Gyllenhaal has long been linked to the film. He helped champion it in 2018 and still produces, with the possibility of taking the lead role himself. Nothing’s confirmed, but with Stiller now attached, the long-gestating drama finally seems to have momentum.
