Cast of ‘Warfare’ Recounts Intense Bootcamp and Real-Life Inspirations Behind the Film

The film ‘Warfare,’ directed by Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza, immerses viewers in a real-life military mission during the Iraq War in 2006. To accurately portray a tight-knit US military unit, the young cast—including Will Poulter, Kit Connor, and Cosmo Jarvis—underwent a rigorous three-week bootcamp involving physical and tactical training. The actors shaved each other’s heads to foster camaraderie, and later commemorated the experience with matching tattoos reading ‘Call On Me,’ a nod to both their brotherhood and the 2004 dance hit that opens the movie.

The movie is inspired by a real mission led by Mendoza, a former Navy SEAL, in which soldiers were embedded in a civilian Iraqi home near a hidden insurgent site. One soldier, Elliott Miller, suffered a traumatic brain injury and memory loss. The film aims to reconstruct the operation as faithfully as possible, helping Miller and others relive and understand the events. Shot in real-time with no soundtrack or flashbacks, the film avoids Hollywood dramatization, opting instead for a visceral, unflinching portrayal of combat. Critics have called it a brutally honest and anti-war cinematic experience.

The cast and creators hope the film helps veterans and audiences grasp the devastating realities of war.