The legendary Tom Hanks has left an indelible imprint on the film industry with his unforgettable performances. Hanks has won numerous awards throughout his career, including several Oscars. However, in an unexpected turn of events that left many fans and industry insiders curious, the acclaimed actor decided to return his prized possessions, his Oscars, to the Academy.
This surprising action led to inquiries about Hanks’ motivation and revealed an intriguing angle on the value he attributes to his numerous honors.
Tom Hanks and His Academy Awards
Tom Hanks is among the few actors to have won multiple Academy Awards due to his versatility and talent. In 1994, he won the Academy Award for Best Actor for portraying an AIDS-stricken lawyer in the film Philadelphia.
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The following year, for his role as the endearingly naive Forrest Gump in the self-titled film, he won again in the same category. Hanks was confident in the movie’s overall success but questioned the significance of a few scenes.
In particular, he questioned the relevance of the bench scene in Forrest Gump, where his character mulls over his experiences. Hanks voiced his doubts to Robert Zemeckis, the film’s director, about whether or not anyone would be interested in the story of the man sitting on a park bench.
He had no idea this scene would go down in cinematic history as a classic and be appreciated worldwide. Hanks kept his Oscars for a long time but eventually felt compelled to return them to the Academy.
After many years of use, the trophies’ obvious disrepair prompted the unexpected decision. Hanks admitted that the gold plating on the statues had corroded due to the acidity and alkalinity in his sweat.
“My Oscars are a little old. When you get one, the sweat in your hands has a certain level of acidity or some alkaline, so when you grab them… that sweat and the chemicals in your body begin to immediately corrode the gold,”
Hanks returned his broken Oscars to the Academy, hoping to have them fixed. Unfortunately, the Academy broke the bad news that the awards were so disrepair that they could only offer substitutes.
Hanks, however, had strong sentimental ties to his original Oscars and was hesitant to replace them. Due to their distinctive serial numbers, Hanks kept his original, albeit damaged, Oscars. He swore he would never again allow himself or anyone else to hold the priceless trophies. Hanks chose this because he cares about his Oscar wins’ credibility and historical significance.
Tom Hanks’ Humble Perspective on the Oscars
Tom Hanks’ grounded outlook on the Oscars has persisted despite his many nominations and critical acclaim for subsequent films. The actor knows the ceremony’s unpredictability and the decision’s subjectivity.
“They got serial numbers on them..so they’re going to try and replate them, and I’m never gonna touch these things again, I won’t put my hands on them or let anybody else, ‘cause everybody comes to my house and goes, ‘Can I hold your Oscar?’ ‘No, no, no, don’t hold my Oscars.'”
Even media mogul Oprah Winfrey thought Tom Hanks would win an Oscar for his performance in Robert Zemeckis’s Cast Away during an interview on her show. Hanks knew the awards were unpredictable and subject to outside influences, so he remained modest and skeptical about his chances.
Likening the Oscars to a card game, Hanks admitted that he frequently lands in the “toss-up” category, where the outcome is uncertain.
“I know how the Academy Awards works: It’s a card game, and I’m in the toss-up category.”
Tom Hanks and Marlon Brando have something in common: their decision to give back their Oscars. Brando did not show up to the 1973 Oscars ceremony despite his win for On the Waterfront in 1955. Instead of accepting the award, he sent actress and activist Sacheen Littlefeather to speak out about the mistreatment of Native Americans in Hollywood and beyond.
Source: Cheat Sheet
