never flies again. Cast James Franco as Blaine Rawlings: A Texan faced with the foreclosure of his family ranch in Texas, who decides to enlist after seeing a newsreel of aerial combat in France. Martin Henderson as Reed Cassidy (a character based upon the real Raoul Lufbery, evident in the references to the squadron mascot, Whiskey the lion): A fellow American, womanizer, traumatized ace pilot, and the pilots' mentor. Jean Reno as Georges Thenault: The commander of the Lafayette Escadrille Jennifer Decker as Lucienne: A French girl who lives with her orphan nephews and niece. Rawlings's love interest. Abdul Salis as Eugene Skinner (based on Eugene Bullard, the first African-American military pilot): An African-American boxer, who has been accepted as an athlete in France, and is motivated to "pay back" his adopted country. Philip Winchester as William Jensen: An American man from Lincoln, Nebraska. Coming from a military family, he tries his best to make his family proud. Tyler Labine as Briggs Lowry: A Dilettante who joins the army because of his overbearing father. David Ellison as Eddie Beagle: A petty thief who joined up in hopes of evading repercussions. Tim Pigott-Smith as Mr. Lowry: Briggs's overbearing father. Gunnar Winbergh as "The Black Falcon": A ruthless German Captain Ace pilot, Cassidy's nemesis. Likely inspired by the Red Baron. Production In writing the original drafts that formed the basis of the final screenplay, Tony Bill made an effort to incorporate the real-life adventures of a number of American World War I expatriates who served in both the Lafayette Escadrille and the Lafayette Flying Corps, although pseudonyms were used throughout. The casting of Franco in an action feature at the time was considered a "stepping stone" to his rise as marquee player and movie star. The film was shot on location in the United Kingdom primarily in spring 2005 although principal photography continued on into the summer. The trench scenes were shot in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, the same location used for Band of Brothers and Saving Private Ryan. The airfield and aerial shots were filmed on and above RAF Halton (near Aylesbury) where hangars, mess rooms and officers quarters were built adjacent to Splash Covert Woods. All scenery and props were removed when filming ended. The interior shots of the chateau were filmed at RAF Halton's officers' mess, Halton House. Some interiors and studio green-screen work were filmed at Elstree Film and Television