Netflix Military Docuseries Embeds Viewers Within the Ranks of US Marines

The four-part series follows the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit as they conduct critical combat exercises in the Pacific.

U.S. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, Battalion landing team deployed from Okinawa, Japan, exit an Amphibious Assault Vehicle (AAV) during the U.S. and South Korean Marines joint landing operation at Pohang seashore, in Pohang, South Korea, on March 29, 2012. Chung Sung-jun/Getty Images

A new Netflix docuseries is providing an unprecedented look behind the scenes of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit—the United States Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed response force.

“Marines” premiered ahead of Veterans Day on Nov. 10, which marked the 250th anniversary of the military branch.

The four episodes were filmed primarily over the summer of 2024, with the support of Gen. Eric M. Smith, the 39th Commandant of the Marine Corps.

The series embeds viewers with the ranks of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, showcasing “the intensity, camaraderie and personal sacrifice of Marines as they undergo training and live aboard the USS America (LHA-6) and USS Green Bay (LPD-20),” a synopsis reads.

“From infantry machine gunners, to fighter pilots, to leaders of the unit, the documentary provides an unfiltered look at the faces that make up the Nation’s ‘911 force.’”

The sea-based Marine Air Ground Task Force is one of seven standing Marine Expeditionary Units.

Stationed out of Okinawa, Japan, the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit was activated in 1967 for combat operations during the Vietnam War. Today, the unit serves as the premier crisis response force throughout the Indo-Pacific region.

Billed as a “coming-of-age” story, “Marines” chronicles the lives of several young Marines as they navigate the ebbs and flows that come with patrolling international waters.

“We’re going to be sailing around for the next two months, and we have to go through training exercises to make sure that we are fit for the task,” one Marine says in the series’ trailer.

“A big part of you wants that conflict,” says another. “You want to know that you have what it takes.”

The amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) launches an F-35B Lightning II assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, while sailing in formation with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force JS Akebono during exercises on April 9-11, 2020. U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Jomark A. Almazan

In a statement, Lt. Col. Matt Hilton, director of the Marine Corps Entertainment & Media Liaison Office, said the series offers “a raw, authentic, and unvarnished look” at the combined-arms team, whose mantra is “Ready, Partnered, Lethal.”

“We partnered with world-class producers because they were committed to accuracy and integrity,” Hilton said. “Our goal is to help the public better understand the mission of our Marines and Sailors.”

Produced by Amblin Documentaries and Lucky 8 TV, “Marines” was directed by Chelsea Yarnell, known for her work on “Wrestlers” (2023) and “America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders” (2024).

Speaking to the Military Times for a Nov. 10 interview, Yarnell said she was amazed at how much production was able to capture while making the docuseries.

“We were constantly aware and surprised by the level of access we were given, filming in spaces that had never been documented before,” she told the publication.

“I think for me, I really felt pressure to make sure that the series reflected the reality of an overseas deployment, just because no one had been given this opportunity in the past. We saw it as our job as storytellers, to tell our stories within the spaces we were granted access to because they were so generous.”