The movie Tom Hanks refused to make: “Are you insane?”
Tom Hanks is globally renowned as one of the definitive American actors of his generation, starring in culturally beloved films such as Forrest Gump, Catch Me If You Can and Saving Private Ryan. His performances defined a specific era in cinema in which independent films were thriving and there was room for all varieties of creative expression, with his career spanning from war dramas, rom-coms and courtroom thrillers.
Through decades of inspiring and heart-warming performances, Hank has bought many iconic lines and scenes to life, with audiences everywhere reciting infamous moments from his filmography, whether it be his desperate pleading for Wilson in Castaway, his troubled announcement in Apollo 13 or voicing of Woody in Toy Story.
As a result, there are not many corners of cinema that haven’t been touched by the actor, with just one film that Hanks vehemently refused to star in, despite promises of riches and huge box office success.
There is nothing more controversial than the success of Forrest Gump, with the film marking a strange shift in cinema in which safe and appeasing projects were favoured over anything challenging, with the patriotic picture famously winning over Pulp Fiction. This win once again showcased the true intentions of the Academy, with the esteemed voters once again opting for a film that demonstrated no genuine creativity or risk and instead choosing the family-friendly ‘classic’ that broke absolutely no boundaries and affirmed the trappings of the American dream and a highly conservative ideology.
However, despite the obvious failings of the film, it has been recognised as one of the most influential from Hanks’ career. While many people might be tempted to recreate this level of success, with many current studios opting for remakes and sequels instead of original work, Hanks was not convinced by the studios suggestion to continue the story of Forrest Gump and hash out another narrative for the character.
Despite the fact that this is an obviously sane decision, Hanks was met with resounding bafflement at his choice to turn down this offer, with the actor describing his thought process behind this. “We could have made five Forrest Gump movies. The studio were saying, ‘Are you insane? Do you have some intense desire not to make money?’ Because they wanted us to develop the second Forrest Gump movie two days after the first one came out, I could be talking to you right now about the version of Forrest Gump that I wrote and directed myself, and that only stars my friends, telling you, ‘You know, I think this is the best of all the Forrest Gump stuff…’”
Ultimately, Hanks had his head screwed on correctly to end the characters journey where he left it in the original film, something that could’ve been ruined if they had elaborated on the ending or tried to continue his story in an inorganic way. As well as this, it is more important to use that funding to create more original films that have a chance at reaching global audiences in the same way as the beloved 1994 classic.
