Apollo 13 is directed by Ron Howard and starring Tom Hanks Bill Paxton Kevin Bacon Gary Sinise and Ed Harris. Technical troubles scuttle the Apollo 13 lunar mission in 1971, risking the lives of astronaut Jim Lovell and his crew in director Ron Howard’s chronicle of this true-life story, which turns a failed journey into a thrilling saga of heroism. Drifting more than 200,000 miles from Earth, the astronauts work furiously with the ground crew to avert tragedy.