Entertainment
'Captain Phillips' Star Tom Hanks Is Still As Lovable as Ever: 10 Reasons We're Still Obsessed With Him
After a certain age, most actors stop being "famous" — they become "iconic," or "treasured," or something else that implies that they still hold the public's respect, but their celebrity has long since passed. Not Tom Hanks, though. The man is 57-years-old, has dozens of movies under his belt, and is still one of the biggest stars on the planet. His newest film, Captain Phillips , is getting amazing reviews, and it might just give the actor a fifth Oscar nomination. As if that wasn't cool enough, Hanks is one of the nicest, funniest guys in Hollywood. Here's to you, Mr. Hanks.
After a certain age, most actors stop being "famous" — they become "iconic," or "treasured," or something else that implies that they still hold the public's respect, but their celebrity has long since passed. Not Tom Hanks, though. The man is 57-years-old, has dozens of movies under his belt, and is still one of the biggest stars on the planet. His newest film, Captain Phillips , is getting amazing reviews, and it might just give the actor a fifth Oscar nomination. As if that wasn't cool enough, Hanks is one of the nicest, funniest guys in Hollywood. Here's to you, Mr. Hanks.
1. He's Never Stopped Trying
Hanks could've stopped acting after the first Toy Story and he still would've been Hollywood royalty, but instead, he built up a mile-long resume filled with genuinely great movies. From Saving Private Ryan to Cast Away to The Da Vinci Code to Cloud Atlas, Hanks has proved his acting chops over and over again. This year, his powerful performance in Captain Phillips is guaranteed to earn him his fifth Oscar nod and, possibly, even his third win. Who needs retirement? Image: Columbia
2. His Amazing Tweets
Everything about Tom Hanks' Twitter, from his bio ("I'm that actor in some of the movies you liked and some you didn't. Sometimes I'm in pretty good shape, other times I'm not. Hey, you gotta live, you know?") to his sign-offs ("Hanx," like we needed clarification) to the actual content of his tweets ("Fascinating medical procedure! Not for the faint of heart" preceding a self-shot video of a gross doctor's appointment), is amazing.
3. His Obsession with Lost Objects
Some of Hanks' most memorable tweets involve his apparent need to photograph and write about every single lost object he encounters while walking around in New York City. He captures fallen gloves ("Give me 5!"), pacifiers ("Baby still crying? Here's why"), and even spatulas, because apparently, there are a lot of those lying around NYC ("Another lost spatula in Hell's Kitchen. When will it stop? When?") Image: @TomHanks
4. His Reddit Q&A
Interviews are always fun, but Hanks' Reddit Q&A was more enjoyable than most, thanks to his sense of humor and effortless charm. There were many great moments from the chat, but our favorite moment is this: Q: "If you were a Friends character, which would you be and why?" A: "The naked guy out the window across the back alley." Because, why not? Image: @TomHanks
5. His Love of Typewriters
Tom Hanks loves typewriters. Like, really, really loves them, so much that he wrote a column for The New York Times about how much he loves them. His enormous enthusiasm ("On your laptop, type out the opening line of Moby Dick and it sounds like callmeishmael. Now do the same on a 1950s Olympia (need one? I’ve got a couple) and behold: CALL! ME! ISHMAEL!") is pretty adorable. When Nerdist host Chris Hardwick sent Hanks a typewriter as an invite to appear on his show, the actor responded with — you guessed it — a typewriter-written note. Give the letter a read, because it's just as amazing as you'd expect. Image: Reddit
6. He's a Quadruple Threat
Hanks is best known as an actor, of course, but it's easy to forget that he's also a director, writer, and producer. He made his directorial debut back in 1996 with the great That Thing You Do!, which he also wrote and produced, and 15 years later, he helmed Larry Crowne. He's written episodes for several TV mini-series, and has produced upwards of a dozen feature films as well as a number of TV movies. Does the man ever sleep?
7. He's Always Game for a Joke
If you still don't believe that Hanks has an awesome sense of humor, this series of photos, where the actor poses with a "passed-out" drunk guy at a diner, should erase any doubt. Image: Reddit
8. He Made 'Lucky Guy' Worth Seeing
Lucky Guy, the final Broadway play written by the late, great Nora Ephron, ran for a few months this past summer. The show itself received middling reviews, but Hanks, who starred as Mike McAlary, a real-life tabloid columnist from the '90s, garnered only praise for his performance. Critics applauded Hanks for his commitment to both the role and Ephron, a longtime friend.
9. He Has an Asteroid Named After Him. Seriously.
Thanks to his support of NASA, his role in Apollo 13, and his love of all things space, Hanks has an asteroid named after him called 12818 Tomhanks. Is there anything cooler than this?
10. He's Not Retiring Anytime Soon
In December, Hanks will star as Walt Disney in Saving Mr. Banks , a highly anticipated biopic. Sometime soon after, he'll start working on Toy Story 4, as well as The Lost Symbol, the third installment in the Robert Langdon series. He's also producing Parkland, a film about the day of JFK's assassination, two miniseries, a TV movie, and a drama series. It looks like Tom Hanks has no plans to retire anytime soon, and we couldn't be happier. Image: Disney
