Tom Hanks reveals the shockingly small number of movies in his career that he thinks are actually good. After getting his start as an actor in 1980's He Knows You're Not Alone, Hanks has worked his way to becoming one of the most acclaimed and beloved actors in all of Hollywood. Over the course of his 4-decade-long career, Hanks has starred in hits like Forrest Gump, Big, Cast Away, Toy Story, and Saving Private Ryan. Hanks most recently appeared in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis as Colonel Tom Parker, and as Geppetto in Robert Zemeckis' Pinoccio adaptation for Disney+.
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In addition to the general love Hanks gets from fans around the world, the actor also has a number of awards to show for his various performances. Hanks has won 2 Best Actor Oscars over the course of his career, for his roles in Philadelphia and Forrest Gump, but was also nominated for the award for his performances in Big, Saving Private Ryan, and Cast Away. In addition to winning 4 Golden Globes awards, Hanks has also become increasingly active behind the camera as a producer, wowing audiences with hit series like Band of Brothers and The Pacific. After Elvis and Pinocchio, Hanks is next slated to appear in A Man Called Otto and Asteroid City.
In a new interview with People, Tom Hanks reveals how many of his own movies he actually thinks are good, and the number is surprisingly small. Of all the movies he's been a part of over the last 40 years, Hanks says that only "four of them are pretty good," highlighting just how hard it is for a film to actually come together, even when the people involved are very experienced. Check out Hanks' full comment below:
"No one knows how a movie is made — though everyone thinks they do. I've made a ton of movies (and four of them are pretty good, I think) and I'm still amazed at how films come together. From a flicker of an idea to the flickering image onscreen, the whole process is a miracle."
Which Of His Movies Does Tom Hanks Think Are Good?
Considering Hanks' impressive resumé, it's certainly surprising to learn that he only thinks about 5% of his movies are actually good. The actor, of course, doesn't reveal which of his movies he's referring to, but critically acclaimed films like Saving Private Ryan, Big, Cast Away, and Philadelphia could very well be on the list. Despite winning an Oscar for his role in Forrest Gump, Zemeckis' hit movie has been reappraised in recent years, with some finding that it perhaps hasn't withstood the test of time as well as some of his other movies.
Trying to guess the movies Hanks thinks are his best by critical and awards acclaim, however, may not necessarily be the best approach. Hanks previously went on record about the favorite three movies that he's made in his career, naming Cloud Atlas, Cast Away, and A League of Their Own. Considering how positively critics received Cast Away upon its release and the fact that Hanks himself has named it one of the best films he's been a part of, it's possible that the 2000 survival drama is among the four films he's referring to as being "pretty good." Unfortunately, out of consideration for his former collaborators that didn't make the list, it's unlikely that Hanks will reveal the 4 films anytime soon.