Montgomery returned to playing light comedy roles, such as Alfred Hitchcock's "Mr. &amp; Mrs. Smith" (1941) with Carole Lombard. He continued his search for dramatic roles. For his role as Joe Pendleton, a boxer and pilot in "Here Comes Mr. Jordan" (1941), Montgomery was nominated for an Oscar a second time. After the U.S. entered World War II in December 1941, he joined the United States Navy, rising to the rank of lieutenant commander, and served on the which was part of the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944.