New Documentary Film To Reveal Untold Story Of Author Michael Shaara’s Iconic Gettysburg Civil War Novel, ‘The Killer Angels’

Film to Feature Stephen Lang, Ken Burns, Martin Sheen, Jeff Daniels, Ron Maxwell, Jeff Shaara, and Lila Shaara

A new film set to be released this summer will explore the untold story of Michael Shaara’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, “The Killer Angels,” which directly inspired Ken Burns’ epic series “The Civil War” as well as the 1993 film, “Gettysburg.” 

Filmmakers Jake Boritt and Gordon Beittenmiller, with the support of Gettysburg History, will premiere “The Gettysburg Book: A Father, Son & The Killer Angels,” on July 3, 2026 at 7:30 p.m. at the Majestic Theater in Gettysburg. The documentary will dive into the writing of Shaara’s book while also revealing the profound personal toll its creation took on the author’s family.

“The Gettysburg Book” film tells the story of “The Killer Angels” through the eyes of Michael Shaara’s son Jeff and daughter Lila. Commentary on the book’s enduring reach comes from “Gettysburg” film cast members Martin Sheen, Jeff Daniels, and Stephen Lang, as well as the film’s director, Ron Maxwell, and historians Gary Gallagher, Carrie Janney, and Scott Hartwig.

The July 3 screening will be followed by a panel discussion featuring the filmmakers, bestselling author Jeff Shaara, and Lang, who narrates the film. Tickets are now available at GettysburgMajestic.org.

“The Battle of Gettysburg is vital to Americans’ understanding of the defining chapter of our history when the Civil War nearly destroyed the United States,” Boritt said. “Michael Shaara’s powerful novel ‘The Killer Angels,’ has brought the battle story to life for millions. Our film, ‘The Gettysburg Book,’ for the first time tells the intense and dramatic story behind Shaara’s writing of this masterpiece of historical fiction and the terrible toll it took on those he loved.”  

“After Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, no other writing has been more influential in our understanding of Gettysburg than ‘The Killer Angels,’” Beittenmiller said. “It was both humbling and exhilarating working with Shaara’s timeless prose in this film and discovering both the tragedy and transcendence experienced by the Shaara family through Michael Shaara’s journey of creation.”

Published in 1974 as the Vietnam War drew to a close, “The Killer Angels” initially garnered a lukewarm reception as a book about war. Even when the novel earned a Pulitzer Prize in 1975, the book struggled to find an audience. Then in 1984, a young filmmaker named Ken Burns discovered the book. “The Killer Angels” inspired Burns to create his groundbreaking 1990 documentary, “The Civil War.” The documentary’s triumph went on to spark the production of Maxwell and Ted Turner’s 1993 film, “Gettysburg.” The culmination of these events shot “The Killer Angels” to the top of The New York Times Best Sellers list. Michael Shaara did not live to see the impact his book would have on the world, having died in 1988.

“The Gettysburg Book” documentary will not only tell the story of Michael Shaara’s public success but also reflect on his private battle with mental illness and family abuse, which led to a long-lasting estrangement from his son Jeff. Boritt and Beittenmiller’s film will compare the searing personal cost the Shaara family experienced to the achievements Jeff found as a bestselling author in his own career.

The film is expected to air on PBS stations across the nation later this year.

About Jake Boritt

Jake Boritt is a filmmaker with numerous credits including “The Gettysburg Story” (2013) and “Troop 759: The Boy Scouts of Harlem” (2009), “Budapest to Gettysburg” (2006) and “Adams County USA: Beyond the Battle of Gettysburg” (2002). He created The Gettysburg Story: Battlefield Auto Tour with his late father Gabor Boritt and actor Stephen Lang. Additionally, Boritt created multiple films featured in Gettysburg’s award-winning Beyond the Battle Museum (2023). He also founded the Gettysburg Film Festival with Ken Burns, a rapidly growing annual event dedicated to history on screen. A native of Gettysburg, he lives with his family in the home where he was raised on an historic farm that served as both an Underground Railroad station and a Confederate battle hospital.

About Gordon Beittenmiller

First-time filmmaker Gordon Beittenmiller grew up in the Gettysburg area and served for five seasons as an interpretive National Park Ranger at Gettysburg. He has successfully built several national companies in the engineering and construction sector and was a major funder of Jake Boritt’s 2013 film, “The Gettysburg Story.”

About Gettysburg History

Gettysburg History is a growing network of museums, historic sites, and unforgettable experiences that introduces visitors to Gettysburg as a touchstone of American History. From the Battle of Gettysburg to Lincoln’s Address and the residence of General and President Dwight Eisenhower, Gettysburg History explores and presents the power of this transcendent American place. See www.gettysburghistory.orgfor more.