One Of Harrison Ford’s Best Movies Just Hit Netflix

The filmography of Harrison Ford goes back five decades now and thanks to the proliferation of streaming services his movies are spread out, but one of the very best just popped up on Netflix, 1997’s Air Force One. Directed by Wolfgang Petersen, the film sees Ford playing the President of the United States who is forced to defend himself and take back the titular plane from a group of terrorists that have found their way on board. The film brought in over $315 million at the global box office and became the fifth highest grossing movie of the year and was nominated for two Academy Awards

To believably create the layout of the presidential aircraft, of which no public records existed at the time, the filmmakers previously revealed that they had to watch television to map the plane. “There weren’t any blueprints or floor plans available, so we had to watch CNN to see what the inside looked like,” Petersen told Entertainment Weekly when the film was released.. “That plane’s the most classified flying document in the world.”

Screenwriter Andrew W. Marlowe added: “It’s very difficult to call the Secret Service and say, ‘If you’re a terrorist and you want to get on board Air Force One, what’s the best way to go about it? And is there a presidential escape pod?’ The Lincoln Bedroom was a check away, but getting on Air Force One was impossible.”

Ford told the outlet, “This is definitely just a movie, and we obviously took some liberties…I didn’t base my performance on President Clinton or on any other President, living or dead.”

Two of the most memorable moments in the film include Ford’s iconic delivery of “Get off my plane” to Oldman’s terrorist leader, and also his trickery where he makes the assailants believe that he has successfully escaped the plane via an escape pod. The filmmakers were previously told that no such pod actually existed on the Air Force One at the time, but Petersen wasn’t convinced. Before filming began Ford was able to secure a tour of the aircraft for him and the director where one area was off limits.

“It just makes too much sense,” Petersen said. “And when we were touring the plane, the cargo hold was one area that was off-limits to us. I left thinking, ‘There’s a pod down there, there’s a pod down there!’”

Air Force One is now streaming on Netflix.