Band of others discuss one man’s dead eyes

Most of us will be able to pinpoint a moment when things didn’t go our way and it felt like the end of the world.

Whether it was a love lost or a job you didn’t get, these moments can be pivotal to how we evaluate the trajectory of our lives.

It’s this premise that comes to life in the podcast Dead Eyes, hosted by actor/comedian Connor Ratliff.

He’s spent almost two decades wondering why Tom Hanks rejected him from a small speaking part in the mini-series, Band of Brothers.

Ratliff claims he was fired from the role the day before filming, after Hanks saw his audition tape and said he had ‘‘dead eyes’’.

The podcast sets out to investigate the series of events that led to his firing and, in each episode, he’s joined by acting peers to solve this mystery, Serial style.

Many of the actors can’t seem to believe Hanks, often described as the nicest man in Hollywood, would have used the phrase ‘‘dead eyes’’, and put it down to an agent who passed on more information than was necessary.

There’s a real sense of camaraderie in these interviews – actor Jon Hamm (Mad Men, Baby Driver) says he was told he’d never be a TV actor and, while interviewing Saturday Night Live alum Bobby Moynihan, they imagine an alternative timeline of his life had he got the role.

Ratliff also manages to track down actor Adam Sims, who got the Band of Brothers role, and Sims is able to connect some of the dots.

As a listener, the ultimate end to this series would be for Ratliff to get the chance to talk to Hanks.

The interconnectedness of the entertainment business makes this a possibility, but it’s not a fixed ending and I think you’ll enjoy Ratliff’s reflective and comedic journey.