Tom Hanks has appeared in many incredible movies throughout his career. And there are many incredible movies he hasn’t been a part of since he smoothly turned down the offer to be a part of the film. The 1993 hit Groundhog Day was rejected by Hanks, and eventually, the role went to Bill Murray.
The director of the film envisioned Hanks in the role of the lead protagonist, but for some reason, he couldn’t manage to convince Hanks for the role, but he did manage to cast his more or less lookalike, Bill Murray.
Why did Tom Hanks reject Groundhog Day?
Harold Ramis’ 1993 romantic-comedy film Groundhog Day was one of the highest-grossing films of its time. The film featured Bill Murray in the lead role. However, he wasn’t the first choice for Ramis, as he wanted to cast Tom Hanks in his film.
Though he ended up casting Murray as the lead, now whenever we watch the film, it’s indeed hard to imagine anyone else apart from him, as the character of Phil Connors was portrayed so well by him that it felt like it was just tailored for him.
During an interview, Ramis shared why Hanks refused to be a part of a $103 million classic film. According to Ramis, Hanks said,
“Audiences would have been sitting there waiting for me to become nice because I always play nice.”
Since Hanks has often portrayed the role of a good guy in movies, fans’ perceptions of him have remained the same. The actor has barely appeared in a villainy role; whenever he does, the film poorly fails. Hence, it can be said that the actor made the right decision by skipping the role.
Why did Harold Ramis choose Bill Murray?
Bill Murray and Tom Hanks are two actors in Hollywood who share a great resemblance in their looks. So much so that once Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich got confused between the two actors at a congressional hearing in 2012. According to a news outlet, when Kucinich watched Groundhog Day, he thought that Hanks was in the film. Perhaps that’s the reason Ramis cast Murray in his film.
Groundhog Day narrates the story of a cynical TV weatherman who finds himself stuck in a time loop, reliving the same Groundhog Day repeatedly while reporting in a small town. As he seeks a way out, he discovers a chance to transform himself and his surroundings.
Though Ramis could not manage to convince Hanks for the role, Murray wasn’t a bad choice, as his impeccable performance was one of the reasons, the film was well acclaimed by the audience and became the modern classic of its time.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
