Tom Hanks wouldn't take his role as gay man in Philadelphia if he was offered it now
Anish Vij
Featured Image Credit: Momodu Mansaray/WireImage/Getty Images/TriStar
Tom Hanks has explained why he would decide against the idea of playing a gay man in Philadelphia if he was offered the part now.
The 67-year-old played young lawyer Andrew Beckett in the 1993 film who is diagnosed with AIDS and struggles to get by in a homophobic society.
His portrayal of the character earned him an Oscar for Best Actor at the 1994 Academy Awards.
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However, Hanks has since opened up about why he wouldn't take such a role today.
In a 2022 interview with The New York Times, journalist David Marchese said: “There’s no way a straight actor would be cast in Philadelphia today and Forrest Gump would be dead in the water.”
The actor replied: “Let’s address ‘could a straight man do what I did in Philadelphia now?’
“No, and rightly so.
“The whole point of Philadelphia was don’t be afraid.
“One of the reasons people weren’t afraid of that movie is that I was playing a gay man.
“We’re beyond that now, and I don’t think people would accept the inauthenticity of a straight guy playing a gay guy.
“It’s not a crime, it’s not boohoo, that someone would say we are going to demand more of a movie in the modern realm of authenticity.
“Do I sound like I’m preaching? I don’t mean to.”
With regards to Forrest Gump, Hanks asked Marchese: “Gary Sinise would not have been able to play Lieutenant Dan because he has legs?”
The journalist responded: “Not that. I’m positive that its premise alone would mean that Forrest Gump would be mocked and picked apart on social media before anyone even had a chance to see it,” leading Hanks to say: “There’s nothing you can do about that.
“The problem with Forrest Gump is it made a billion dollars. If we’d just made a successful movie, Bob and I would have been geniuses. But because we made a wildly successful movie, we were diabolical geniuses.
“Is it a bad problem to have? No, but there’s books of the greatest movies of all time, and Forrest Gump doesn’t appear because, oh, it’s this sappy nostalgia fest. Every year there’s an article that goes, 'The Movie That Should Have Won Best Picture' and it’s always Pulp Fiction. Pulp Fiction is a masterpiece without a doubt.
“Look, I don’t know, but there is a moment of undeniable heartbreaking humanity in Forrest Gump when Gary Sinise — he’s playing Lieutenant Dan — and his Asian wife walk up to our house on the day that Forrest and Jenny get married.”