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Damian Lewis on how World War II film Pressure brought him full circle to Band of Brothers
Lewis stars as Bernard Montgomery in the new film about how meteorologist James Stagg played a crucial role in the success of the D-Day landings.
- Patrick Cremona
Published: Thursday, 10 September 2026 at 11:32 am
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Despite having starred in all sorts of films and TV shows in the past 25 years – from Homeland to Wolf Hall – it's his role as Major Richard Winters in Band of Brothers for which Damian Lewis remains best known to many.
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The actor was one of several then-rising stars, alongside the likes of Stephen Graham, James McAvoy, Simon Pegg, Tom Hardy and Michael Fassbender, to appear in the legendary HBO miniseries about the final stages of the Second World War, winning great acclaim for his portrayal.
There's therefore an extra layer of interest in that fact that Lewis has returned to the subject of the war, and D-Day specifically, in new drama Pressure – which is now showing in UK cinemas.
The film revolves around meteorologist James Stagg (played by another Band of Brothers alum, Andrew Scott) and explores the vital and often unreported impact the Scot had on determining the success of the Normandy landings.
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Meanwhile, Lewis stars as British officer Bernard Montgomery, who is shown to be not initially best pleased that the meticulously planned operation may have to be delayed by the weather conditions.
Speaking exclusively to Radio Times just ahead of release, Lewis revealed that it had been "endlessly interesting" to return to the subject of D-Day from a different angle a quarter of a century later.
"As I was filming the moments when we were about to launch an invasion, the liberation of Europe on June 6, I was reminded that 506 Easy Company, 101st Airborne had just dropped behind enemy lines in the dead of night," he explained.
"And were missing their drop zones and trying to find gathering points where they could all get together and start the Allied advance through Normandy."
Damian Lewis in Band of Brothers. HBO
He added: "In episode 2 of Band of Brothers, the TV truth of it is that they had just taken out these four howitzers, these 88s, which were shelling the beaches at Normandy, Utah and Omaha, and enabling our boys and the American boys on those two beaches to come up the beach, working simultaneously.
"So I feel very lucky to have helped win the Second World War twice from two different standpoints!"
Speaking about taking on the role of Montgomery – or Monty, as he was often called – Lewis explained how the officer "was a particular flavour" who "wasn't liked by everybody".
"He was adored by his men [but] that's not the Monty we saw in this," he said. "We didn't have time. It's not a film about Monty."
He explained how the purpose of the character in the film was to present "a sincere and seriously committed military argument" that came up against Stagg's meteorological argument, which naturally led to the pair butting heads.
"He was stubborn. He was opinionated. He could be condescending," Lewis explained. "He condescends to Stagg. Manages to remain polite, just, but he's clearly irritated by... why are we having the liberation of Europe dictated to us by a weatherman?"
He continued: "Monty was well known for meticulous preparation, and he'd been planning it for months with the other guys and 1000s of men already in boats. You couldn't leave them there longer. It was bad for morale, bad for health. Bad for security.
"But I think what David [Haig, writer] has done so beautifully is this is a depiction of leadership and what serious, careful and considered leadership should look like in serious moments.
"And together they manage to make the right decision, and they do listen to this David who's presented to these Goliaths and they make the right decision. So it's a good study of a good kind of leadership."
Pressure is now showing in UK cinemas.
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Authors
Patrick CremonaSenior Film Writer
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
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