Tom Hanks showcases wild wonders of the Americas in a new blockbuster BBC nature series

By Sarah Marshall, PA

Sir David Attenborough is Britain’s undisputed national treasure, but across the Atlantic another charismatic, captivating figure is emerging as the voice of natural history in America.

TV producer Mike Gunton recalls mentally identifying the talent several years ago. Sat in an office pitching to Hollywood execs, he recalls scribbling down a name in his notes.

“I’d just finished working on a project with David Attenborough, and I was thinking, ‘Who’s the equivalent? Who does everybody want to be with? Who does everybody trust? Who does everybody want to hear?’ It’s got to be Tom Hanks.”

Several years later, the multi award-winning actor can be heard narrating a new 10-part natural world series sweeping the enormous breadth of the Americas.

Covering two continents and spanning multiple ecosystems, the ambitious show was filmed over the course of five years and 180 expeditions.

“As far as nature is concerned, this is one super landmass,” says Gunton, creative director of Factual and the Natural History Unit for BBC Studios, whose past accolades include Planet Earth II and Dynasties.

“It’s the only place that reaches right up into the Arctic and right down into the Antarctic. It splits oceans and has the Tropics of Cancer, the Tropic of Capricorn, the Equator and every type of habitat.”

Commissioned for an initial US release, the blockbuster series intentionally aims to instil a sense of national pride in the destinations featured. Entertaining whilst being educational, it’s a visual safari and Tom Hanks is very much along for the ride.

“It feels like Tom is sitting here with his arm around you, saying, ‘I’ve just seen this most incredible thing’ – rather than a voice of God saying this happens here and this happens there,” adds Gunton.

From bison on the Great Plains to polar bears in Hudson Bay, countless bucket-list wildlife experiences feature along with behaviours captured for the first time – including several male blue whales racing along the coast of California, a sequence which Gunton highlights as one of his favourites.

“This is an animal that is the size of a jumbo jet, almost going at 30 miles an hour and then leaping out of the water. That’s a lot of energy. We don’t really know why they were doing it, but it’s incredible. One of the most impressive animals of all time doing something that is some of the most impressive things I’ve ever seen.”

But it’s  not just the animals that shine.

“You don’t just go to the giant redwood forest to see the giant redwoods,” Gunton points out. “You go there to experience the whole environment. We work very hard to invoke the character of individual places. These aren’t just locations.”

In every episode, efforts are made to make the wild world feel relatable. At a time when political upheavals in the USA threaten to unravel years of environmental protection efforts, connecting with audiences is more important than ever before.

“It’s a good time to remind people that this is special,” admits Gunton diplomatically. “You’ve got something incredible here, it should be treasured. But it’s vulnerable. It’s like that Joni Mitchell song. You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone.

“Tom feels that very strongly as well. He was keen to make sure that we reminded the audience that these wonders are on their doorstep, but they’re fragile, they’re precious, we have to treasure them.”

Mike Gunton shares several standout sequences from the series…

Pumas in Torres del Paine, Patagonia, Chile

“It’s hard to find real wilderness, but this is definitely real wilderness. There’s been a lot of protection of pumas and numbers are increasing but the reason why it’s hard to find them is because they’re brilliant at camouflage.

“If you’d asked me, I’d say filming pumas was one of the hardest shoots, just because physically it’s so demanding. As a filmmaker, it’s tough because you can’t go in vehicles. You have to do it pretty much all on foot. Now, if you ask Tom Hanks [about the toughest shoot], he’d say, filming army ants in the Amazon, because they want to bite you.”

Blue whales in California, USA

“Blue whales are notoriously difficult to film – this is the biggest animal that’s ever lived. They’re mysterious. We know very little about them.

“We found this one camera operator who had incredible access to a secret location, and he managed to film not just one, not just two or three, but four blue whales.”

Burrowing owls, Florida, USA

“The natural habitat of these tiny owls is close-cropped prairies, where they can see over the grass for predators. But they’ve moved into human habitats where people beautifully mow their lawns.

“Males build these burrows and do a bobbing dance to attract a mate. Our story is that we join this community of owls, all of whom are paired off. There’s one guy who was too late to the party, and he mournfully does this little dance. We do a kind of Sleepless in Seattle montage where the days go by, the sun sets, the sun rises.

“He does one last dance and he hears a female. She’s also late to the party, and he goes into a hyperdrive. It’s hilarious. There’s this lovely moment where they meet, and she turns and does this big wink at him.”

Blue-footed boobies, Mexico

“The story here is one of infidelity. To attract a mate, males do a dance and show off their blue feet. We filmed a courting pair, but when the male goes off to find food, the female’s head is turned by another male who has even bluer feet, and she starts to sort of flirt with him.

“The other male then comes back, and they have a bit of a barney. We gave Tom a script but encouraged him to extemporize. He does it perfectly exclaiming, ‘He’s not gonna put up with that’.

“It’s so unlike a narrator. That’s what is unique about this project. There are these moments where, as an audience, you’re brought into the shows through Tom almost the breaking the fourth wall.”

Watch The Americas from 6:30pm Sunday, March 2nd on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.