Tom Hanks is known for starring in many iconic movies. One of his most outstanding projects was the Oscar-winning Saving Private RyanDirected by Steven Spielberg. But Hanks almost turned the movie down, as a part of him feared that his friendship with Spielberg would not survive.
Tom Hanks Almost Didn’t Work With Steven Spielberg On ‘Saving Private Ryan’ Due To Their Friendship
Tom Hank | Rich Fury/Fake Images
The Forrest Gump The star almost turned down the opportunity to work with Spielberg out of concern for their friendship. However, the concern was not unfounded. Rather, it came from what Hanks had seen in the past.
“I’ve seen friendships end because of a bad movie experience, and I was very reluctant to do it because of that,” Hanks said in an interview with the Deseret News. “Sometimes I am in awe of meeting this great guy and being friends with him. So it hasn’t been worth risking our friendship until now.”
But even after Hanks signed on, there was still the anxiety of ruining each other’s friendship when they filmed.
“The first movie was full of, ‘I don’t want to say anything that Tom isn’t going to like. I want to keep your friendship. I like this boy and his family. God, don’t let me do anything to screw it up,” Spielberg told Today.
But luckily, that kind of tension didn’t last long.
“I kind of said, ‘Look, you know…you can’t offend me. You are the boss. Tell me what you like, and if you don’t like my ideas, say: That’s fine, but let’s do something different,’” Hanks said. “He’s the director of the movie, you know? My job is to do what the director of the film wants.”
Tom Hanks continues to surprise Steven Spielberg when they work together
Later Saving Private Ryanthe two collaborated on yet more films. bridge of spies it was the last project Hanks and Spielberg teamed up on. Speaking at the New York Film Festival, Spielberg and Hanks discussed how they were still surprised after all these years.
“Well, to me, everything Tom does is a surprise to me because I don’t recognize him. I know Tom very well, but I don’t recognize the character he plays… And that always surprises me… It was a remarkable thing to see. He’s been in every experience I’ve ever had with Tom because every character he plays in the four movies we’ve done together is totally different,” Spielberg said according to Vulture.
Meanwhile, Hanks also took the time to praise the director, complimenting him on the way he treats the actors.
“Well, I would say, speaking for all the actors in the movie, you never want to find yourself doing your last Steven Spielberg movie. You know, you really want to please the man,” Hanks added. “Steven does something amazing when he chooses you. He empowers you with the scene. He wants you to come in with ideas that are beyond the page, beyond the text, and even, I think, beyond the scope of your own character.”
Tom Hanks had to convince the rest of the actors to stay at Steven Spielberg’s Bootcamp in ‘Saving Private Ryan’
The schindler’s list The director did what he could to get authentic performances from his actors and honor the story he was telling. This included putting his actors in the kind of boot camp that real soldiers would endure. Eventually, his time at the camp got so intense that one of the actors was hesitant to stay. It was up to Hanks to lure everyone back.
“I think the other guys were expecting more of a traditional actor essay theory, you know, where you walk around with your books and go, ‘You know, I don’t know if I should say that line here.’ . . . There was a day when everyone wanted to leave. We had quite a few discussions about why I thought we shouldn’t do it,” Hanks said in an interview with the Buffalo News.
But Hanks said the training helped the actors immerse themselves more deeply in their roles.
“By the time we finished, we were exhausted, miserable, sore, tired and hungry and wanted to go home. And we were playing guys who were tired and exhausted and sore and hungry and wanted to go home,” she continued. “It was the perfect season. From the first day of shooting, we didn’t need the costumes, we didn’t need the prop guys, we didn’t need the outfitters. We put everything on because we had put it on and taken it off hundreds of times before that. We were ready to go before the camera crew. We were sleeping on the grass while the camera set up.”
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