When the sling began to dip into the water,
chief boatswain's mate Thomas Young, an 18 - year veteran, bellowed the order «Release the whale!»
Supporting the cast are Hamish Linklater as Cal Zapata, a scientist who mans the international satellite station in Hawaii that searches the skies for signs of life; Jesse Plemons as Jimmy «Ordy» Ord, a
boatswain aboard USS John Paul Jones; New Zealander John Tui as the ship's engine room expert,
Chief Petty Officer Walter «The Beast» Lynch; and, in his professional acting debut, U.S. Army Colonel Gregory D. Gadson, a battalion leader who lost both legs in Iraq in 2007.