Watch ‘World War II with Tom Hanks’ on The HISTORY Channel

There’s no shortage of World War II documentaries out there, but World War II with Tom Hanks aims to do something bigger. This new 20-episode event series from The HISTORY Channel doesn’t just revisit the war’s biggest moments. It brings viewers inside them, combining sweeping history with the personal stories, impossible decisions, and everyday people caught in the middle of it all.

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Premiering in May 2026, the series follows the full arc of World War II, from the rise of fascism in Europe to the fall of Berlin, from Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima, and the uneasy aftermath that reshaped the world.

And with Tom Hanks guiding the story, there’s a sense of weight and humanity throughout. Hanks has long been connected to WWII storytelling through projects like Band of Brothers and Saving Private Ryan, and that passion comes through here in a way that feels personal rather than academic.

Each episode explores the major turning points of the war while also shining a light on the people and systems behind the scenes: intelligence operations, supply chains, medics, factory workers, and civilians whose lives were forever changed. The result is a series that feels massive in scale, but surprisingly intimate at the same time.

What makes the series especially compelling is how immediate it feels. This isn’t history presented as dusty facts from a textbook. It’s a reminder that our modern world was shaped by the events of the 1940s in ways we still feel today.

Whether you’re a longtime history buff or simply looking for your next gripping docuseries, World War II with Tom Hanks has the kind of storytelling that pulls you in fast. Don’t be surprised if “just one episode” turns into three.