Red Tails/Trivia

• Actor Allusion: Cuba Gooding Jr. and Terrance Howard have both played members of the Tuskegee Airmen in the past. On top of that, Terrance Howard has previously played a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force (well, Army Air Forces, given the time period.)
• Hollywood Tactics: In addition to the Standard Hollywood Strafing Procedure, lampshaded in the movie itself, there is the requirement for the escorts to stay with the bombers. In this case, a Real Life strategy that actually made it more difficult for escorting fighters to protect the bombers, as they had a very limited opportunity to engage the German fighters who preferred hit and run tactics. The strategy eventually evolved to include fighters staying close to the bombers (showing the bomber crews that they were protected), and more fighters farther out actively screening the formation against any incoming enemies.
• Hire the Critic: A frequent topic on Aaron McGruder's comic strip The Boondocks was Jar Jar Binks and the racial stereotyping he portrayed. So when George Lucas decided he wanted a screenwriter for Red Tails who knew how to write well for black people, guess who he chose to hire? That's right, Aaron McGruder.
• Homage Shot: At least a few.
  • We get a shot of the American fighters taking off in the distance, as a pair of onlookers watch from a tower.
  • We see the tail of a Mustang fighter slicing through the clouds before the rest of the plane rises into view, much in the style of Jaws.
    • Or Airplane!, which was making fun of Jaws with that shot anyways.
• The Shelf of Movie Languishment: Got stuck on it for a couple years while a distributor was found.