Tom Hanks won an Oscar for the movie Philadelphia, in which he played a gay man who wants justice after being fired because he has HIV. The movie came out about 28 years ago.
So much for that. But Hanks told The New York Times Magazine that in the present, he could never play that role, and he knows why.
"Could a straight man do in Philadelphia what I did now? "No, and that's a good thing," Hanks said. "Philadelphia was all about saying, 'Don't be afraid.' People weren't scared of that movie in part because I played a gay man in it. We're past that now, and I don't think people would let a straight guy play a gay guy because it wouldn't be real. It's not a crime or a big deal if someone says that in the modern world of authenticity, we'll want more from a movie. Does it sound like I'm giving a sermon? I'm not trying to."
Hanks said these things to promote his most recent movie, Baz Luhrmann's Elvis, in which he plays Elvis's manager, Tom Parker.
The actor also explained why he no longer uses Twitter. Since May 2020, he hasn't written anything.
"I quit posting because, first of all, I thought it was a waste of time. "I'm already getting enough attention," he said. "But I'd also post something silly, like, 'Here's a pair of shoes I saw in the middle of the street,' and the third comment would be, '[Expletive] you, Hanks.' I'm not sure if I should give that guy access to the forum. If the third comment is "[Expletive] you, you Obama-loving communist," I feel like I don't need to do that."