“I was really reluctant to do it”: The $482M Movie That Had Tom Hanks Convinced It’ll Destroy His Friendship With Steven Spielberg

Tom Hanks, the actor who defined an entire generation and influenced the pop culture of an era, had a hard time accepting work from one of the greatest directors of Hollywood. Almost 3 decades down the line, it seems unforgivable to think we nearly missed Saving Private Ryan or Band of Brothers because of a near-superstitious belief on the actor’s part.

While Spielberg established himself with an unassailable career arc comprising such movies (and franchises) as Jaws, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, and Schindler’s List, the privilege of being directed by the Hollywood legend is akin to no other experience within the industry.

In hindsight, it was obvious that Hanks and Spielberg would end up collaborating on projects more than once, and come out the other end all the better for it.

The Unsung Destiny of Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg

While some relationships are doomed to fail from the start, a few others are always meant to be. The friendship between Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg is a step beyond that — they are destiny-bound threads interlinked to create the most influential pieces of art together. Among those pieces, Saving Private Ryan is a particularly treasured one, because it marked the beginning of a long and fortuitous journey.

Soon after the 1998 war drama that was visceral in its graphic imagery and dramatic in its slow-burn tragedy, the creative relationship between Hanks and Spielberg took a turn for the better, leading to masterpieces like Band of Brothers and The Pacific.

But before the director and actor started down this road together, Tom Hanks was plagued by one terrible thought that could have ruined almost everything.

Tom Hanks Overcomes a Hollywood Superstition

Not many people are blessed enough to have a great working relationship with someone who you can also call one of your closest friends. But Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg do not fall into the category of mere mortal men. Both are established (near mythical) legends in their individual art forms.

However, it was exactly this unimpeachable reputation that stopped Tom Hanks from immediately saying ‘yes’ to the opportunity of collaborating with the Oscar-winning filmmaker. In an interview with Deseret News, Hanks revealed:

I’ve seen friendships that ended because of a bad moviemaking experience, and I was really reluctant to do it because of that. Sometimes I’m just astounded that I know this great guy and that I’m friends with him. So it hasn’t been worth it to risk our friendship until now.

The concern wasn’t unrequited, however. Spielberg, on his part, prayed that Saving Private Ryan wouldn’t spell the end of their personal and professional friendship. The director revealed in an interview with Today:

The first movie was fraught with, ‘I don’t want to say anything that Tom’s not going to like. I want to keep his friendship. I like this guy and his family. God, don’t let me do anything that’s going to screw that up.’

When all was said and done, and both parties came out of the experience unscathed, Hanks and Spielberg not only held each other in esteem, but the film shoot also elevated their trust in one another. The product of that echoed generations later as the duo kept collaborating on films like Catch Me If You Can (2002), The Terminal (2004), and Bridge of Spies (2015). As producers, the duo collaborated on Band of Brothers, The Pacific, and most recently, Masters of the Air.

Saving Private Ryan is available to stream on Paramount+ and Peacock.