Terrence Howard, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Bryan Cranston have joined the cast of George Lucas’ WWII action-adventure Red Tails, which follows the exploits of the Tuskegee Airmen, according to Variety. Nate Parker, David Oyelowo, Tristan Wilds, Method Man, Lee Tergesen, Ne-Yo, Elijah Kelley, Andre Royo and Jesse Williams are already attached to the ensemble project, according to the report.

Anthony Hemingway, who has directed episodes of Battlestar Galactica, CSI: NY, Heroes, True Blood and other TV dramas, makes his feature film debut, with Lucas executive producing and financing the project through his Lucasfilm production company. Rick McCallum and Charles Floyd Johnson are producing Red Tails. Filming begins soon in Europe, from a script by John Ridley.

The story revolves around the young pilots who overcame institutional racism in the military to form the Tuskegee Airmen, the first African-American fighter pilots in U.S. military history. Their planes featured the red-painted tails that give the film its title.

“I’ve been wanting to do Red Tails for 20 years, and we’ve finally got the means to showcase the skill of the Tuskegee pilots,” Lucas said. “We’re working on techniques which will give us the first true look at the aerial dogfighting of the era.”