Sawyer Spielberg on the 'Perseverance' Taught By Mom Kate Capshaw — and Visiting Dad Steven's Sets as a Kid (Exclusive)

Sawyer Spielberg is opening up about following in his parents Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw’s footsteps.

Sawyer — who appears in the Apple TV+ series Masters of the Air — exclusively told PEOPLE at the show’s Los Angeles premiere on Wednesday that he was inspired by his parents’ careers in Hollywood from an early age.

“I started off in theater in California, at a small little theater in Venice Beach, and then I just got the bug right away,” Sawyer, 31, said of acting. “I think I was about 15, and I was lucky enough to have parents who made a living off doing it, and so that was inspiring.” 

“I was [like], 'Oh, this is something that's possible,'” he adds. “And then I went to drama school after high school and I wanted to study theater, and then I stayed in theater in New York for a while before transitioning over to film and TV.”

The actor shared that his mom helped him to learn the ropes of the entertainment industry and overcome rejection through “perseverance and also just by example.” He added: “She is an incredible actor and she's made an incredible career for herself and just watching her growing up, living by example, did the trick for me.”

When asked if he shares an interest in military history with his father Steven and Masters of the Air executive producer Tom Hanks, he replied, “One of the first sets I remember being on as a kid was Saving Private Ryan, so, yes.”

As for his experience on the set of the new historical drama, he shared that he found common ground with his costars including Austin Butler, Anthony Boyle, Callum Turner, Nate Mann, Rafferty Law, Barry Keoghan, Josiah Cross, Branden Cook and Ncuti Gatwa.

“[The series’ senior military advisor] Captain Dale Dye did a really good job in making sure everyone left their male egos at the door, so when we got into bootcamp there was no room for that, there was only room for bonding,” he shared. “And we were well-educated on everything there is to know about the Air Force, so by the time we got to set, we had not only a bond, but we were educated on what to do.”

Sawyer also found a new love of aviation while filming the series about the U.S. Air Force pilots operating behind enemy lines during World War II.

“It was memorizing every single switch and what every single part of the plane did and learning how to fly, which I thought was the most challenging, but also the most rewarding,” he explained. “And so when you watch it, you'll see us all, we're working that cockpit. We're doing all the moves that these guys actually had to do on the day of.”

While Sawyer noted the cast didn’t get “up in the air” while filming, he hopes to give it a try in the future. He shared, “I would love to. I would love to. It's on my list. It's on my list of things to do.”

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Masters of the Air will premiere on Apple TV+ on Friday, Jan. 26 with the first two episodes, followed by one new episode every week.