Tom Hanks has starred in a variety of films, with many receiving critical praise and others that were panned. But there was only one film he did that was so stressful on him that it gave him a new perspective on acting.
Tom Hanks’ acting career once got to his head
As is the case with many actors, Hanks became interested in the craft during his childhood years. The Oscar-winner confided that his life at home growing up, though wholesome, could be lonely at times. Especially considering that Hanks was an only child. His chef father both worked and moved around a lot during Hanks’ youth, which contributed to his loneliness.
“My dad would get a phone call at 10 o’clock at night from a buddy of his who needs desperately a head chef and my dad would say ‘I’ll be there at 8am’ and we would pack up the car and Dad would start the next day,” Hanks once recalled according to Express.
Going to theater often helped Hanks cope and combat the loneliness, but it also instilled in him a passion for acting. That passion would eventually lead to Hanks becoming a professional actor for a living. But in the beginning of his rise in Hollywood, Hanks realized his ego was being affected by his growing fame.
“I didn’t become an actor to develop a personality cult or to get power over people. I went into this because it’s fun, because it’s a great way to make a living. That really governs my reaction to it all. But you get all this attention. Your head can play all sorts of bizarre tricks. By now, I think I have a pretty good grasp of how this stuff works. I fought my battles a long time ago,” he said in a 1989 interview with Playboy.
However, Hanks quickly grew out of that mentality.
“You have people surrounding you, telling you that you’re the greatest thing in the world. I honestly don’t think I have an inflated view of myself now. But it happens,” he added.
Tom Hanks didn’t think he’d be quite the same actor again after this movie
Hanks hasn’t only contributed to the world of cinema through his acting. The Forrest Gump star also tried his hand in directing as well. Hanks co-wrote, directed, and starred in the 1996 comedy That Thing You Do!. In the film, Hanks plays a music manager that helps a local band achieve superstardom.
Hanks had a lot at stake for this movie. He knew it wouldn’t have gotten made if it wasn’t for his celebrity at the time. He also knew that, if the film didn’t too well, that his directorial career would’ve been short-lived.
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“I’ll admit I had an advantage,” he once said in an interview with The Virginia Pilot. “If my name had been Tom Smith, they might not have read it. But if it goes smackeroo, flop, you won’t see me directing anything else. You don’t get a second chance.”
But both directing and acting in the project took a bit of a toll on Hanks. The actor experienced the rigorous hours of the average filmmaker that often soured his mood.
“There’s something to be said for being a highly paid movie star. You may get bored sitting in your trailer, but the director never gets to go to the trailer. For this job, I started at 4 a.m. every day and didn’t get home until 11:45 at night. I wasn’t ready for the physical grind of it,” he said.
Hanks was also pretty certain the experience would end up changing him as a performer.
“I don’t think I’ll ever be quite the same actor again. I always thought I was a pretty good boy with directors but I had come in late, and grumpy, a couple of times. I know now what that poor guy is going through,” he said.
Tom Hanks was disappointed by ‘That Thing You Do!’
Most of That Thing You Do!’s success happened with VHS and DVD sales. But during its theatrical run, the film didn’t do too well. The movie only made $25 million domestically, and $8.7 million internationally. As proud as Hanks was of the film, he wasn’t in the least thrilled by the results.
“Everybody wants their movie to cause fistfights and riots and make history. I knew it wasn’t going to do that, but I was disappointed. You don’t want a movie to do OK and peter out, which is what it did. We had a three-star movie but we didn’t do three-star business,” he said in an interview with The Ringer.
But that didn’t completely deter Hanks’ directorial ambitions. Years later, Hanks would direct the romcom Larry Crowne, which he also co-starred with Julia Roberts in.
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