Tom Hanks Admits He Wouldn’t Play His Gay ‘Philadelphia’ Character Today: It’s ‘Inauthentic’

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Tom Hanks, 65, has a unique perspective about his Oscar-winning performance in 1993’s Philadelphia. In an interview with The New York Times Magazine, the acclaimed actor admitted that he couldn’t play the role of Andy Beckett, an openly gay lawyer battling AIDS, today. “And rightly so,” Tom told the publication. “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.”

Denzel Washington, Mary Steenburgen, Antonio Banderas, and Jason Robards, was one of the first major Hollywood films to touch on homophobia and AIDS.

Tom was also asked about 1994’s Forrest Gump which earned him his second Oscar for Best Actor. He described Forrest Gump and Philadelphia as “timely movies,” adding, “at the time, that you might not be able to make now.” He also defended Forrest Gump and said it deserved the Best Picture Oscar over popular movies like Shawshank Redemption and Pulp Fiction.

Elvis, where he plays Colonel Tom Parker, the former carnival worker-turned music manager, and promoter who helped discover Elvis Presley. Austin Butler plays the “King of Rock And Roll.”

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