The thriller “Mile 22,” starring Mark Wahlberg, is headed to Afghanistan for a free, advanced screening for troops, Aug. 11 to 15, ahead of its release in the U.S. on Aug. 17.
The film will also be screened at 12 Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) Reel Time theaters in the U.S. on Aug. 4. The effort is the result of a partnership between STXfilms, a division of STX Entertainment, and AAFES.
A quick Internet search found that the movie will also be screened in advance, for free, at some Navy and Marine Corps locations, such as Sharkey Theater on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and Camp Lejuene’s base theater. Both of those screenings are set for Aug. 11. Check your local base theater for more information.
In Afghanistan, the movie will be screened at Bagram Air Base, and at the U.S. Embassy at Kabul from Aug. 11 to 15.
“Mile 22″ stars Wahlberg as James Silva, a CIA operative. Aided by a top-secret tactical command team, Silva must retrieve and transport “an asset who holds life-threatening information” to Mile 22 before the enemy closes in, according to the synopsis provided by AAFES.
The movie also stars John Malkovich, Ronda Rousey, Lauren Cohan and Iko Uwais.
“For our troops deployed overseas, simply watching a movie is a motivating, two-hour respite from their stressful day-to-day activities,” Army Col. Scott McFarland, AAFES Europe and Southwest Asia Region commander, said in an announcement of the screenings. “Since they can’t be with their families and friends, it’s a way to say ‘Thank you, we appreciate what you’re doing for all of us.'”
“It is always an honor to have one of our films selected to be screened for our brave troops overseas, and we proudly support them and [AAFES] with our latest film,” Kevin Grayson, president of domestic distribution for STXfilms, said in the announcement.
The 12 AAFES Reel Time Theater locations where the movie will be shown for free on Aug. 4 are listed below.
Fort Campbell, Kentucky
Fort Hood, Texas
Fort Irwin, California
Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington
Fort Riley, Kansas
Hickam Air Base, Hawaii
Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi
Joint Base Andrews, Maryland
Joint Base San Antonio (Lackland)
Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst (McGuire)
Travis AFB, California
Vandenberg AFB, California
Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.
