When most people hear the name Tom Hanks, they probably associate him with his nice guy persona.
Hanks has never been one to throw a fit on set or get embroiled in a tabloid scandal.
Curious to find out how Hanks became the nicest and most successful man in Hollywood?
Here is the stunningtransformationof Tom Hanks.
The actor was born in California in1956.
His parents divorced when he was 5 years old, leaving him and his siblings feeling neglected.
Some of his siblings lived with his mother, while others, including Hanks, lived with his father.
Thisfeeling of lonelinessand falling through the cracks defined Hanks' early life.
As he toldGraham Bensinger, he and his siblings had to learn how to take care of themselves.
Often, they would be responsible with feeding themselves dinner.
He became a lifelong optimist.
“Up until then I’d had no clue that acting was ever an option,” he said.
After seeing the play, Hanks started getting involved in the theater program at school.
He took drama classes and auditioned for the school plays.
“[I] had more fun than I could possibly imagine,” he shared with Interview.
Hanks continued acting when he went to community college and, later, at California State University.
It seems he had found his calling.
He appeared in several plays directed by Vincent Dowling.
Those words stuck with Hanks.
As Hanks explained toFilm Comment, these first theater roles came when he was still attending college.
“It was the biggest break in the world,” he said.
He played a servant in the Anton Chekhov play “The Cherry Orchard.”
He then went on to play Grumio in “Taming of the Shrew.”
“That’s how I began,” he said.
“A lot of flukes but also being able to deliver the goods at the right time.”
Of course, over the years, Hanks isn’t always nice.
As he toldConan, when people take advantage of him, he can get angry.
It’s good to know that even Tom Hanks has a bit of a temper!
Soon after, the couple had a son and a daughter.
As a young father, Hanks initially thought he was on the right path.
“I thought I was progressing towards my badge,” he said.
In some ways, it helped him avoid the common pitfalls of being a successful young actor in Hollywood.
It sounds like, in many ways, Hanks was lucky to settle down so young.
Having been a child of divorce, Hanks felt extremely guilty about his own family breaking up.
As he toldGraham Bensinger, it was “a horribly painful time fraught with emotion and bad feelings.”
All of these feelings left Hanks feeling depressed.
He ended up going to therapy three times a week.
After this breakout role, Hanks quickly established himself as an exciting young comedic actor.
It was also a time when comedies were extremely popular.
At the time, comedy felt like a natural fit for Hanks.
As theIndependentonce noted, physical comedy was his strong suit at the time.
Just one year later, hetied the knot with Rita Wilson.
His second marriage was very different from anything he’d ever known.
Wilson came from a large, happy family.
For the first time, he got to experience what this kind of family was really like.
However, when he met Wilson, everything clicked.
“I immediately felt comfortable.
I immediately felt like I was with people who were interested.”
In fact, Hanks now believes thatWilson “saved” himfrom loneliness.
He even picked up an Oscar nomination for his work in the 1988 film “Big.”
Instead, he wanted to try his hand at meatier roles in more dramatic films.
I was older and I’d experienced some degrees of bitter compromise in areas that are not public."
Hanks explained toBusiness Insiderthat it wasn’t easy at first.
As soon as Hanks looked for more dramatic roles, he found them and a whole lot more.
In 1994, Hanks won the Oscar for best actor for his role in “Philadelphia.”
In 1995, he won again for his role in “Forrest Gump.”
Clearly, making the transition from comedy to drama was the right decision for him.
It’s easy to see why Hanks won Oscars for both of these films.
He and his wife, Rita Wilson, were in Australia at the time.
As Hanks toldThe Guardian, it was a difficult time.
The pair were hospitalized for several days and experienced a wide range of symptoms.
Wilson was nauseous and feverish, whereas Hanks had “crippling body aches” and extreme fatigue.
Contracting COVID made Hanks passionate about advocating for public health throughout the crisis.
He even compared following COVID safety rules to following road safety rules while driving a car.
As he toldThe Guardian, he isn’t getting any younger.
Nevertheless, he’s doing his best to stay healthy.
After that diagnosis, Hanks slowly changed his habits.
Since then, he’s embraced the aging process.
“I actually like getting older.
So, for Hanks, getting older actually comes with some positives!
As long as he can connect with the character and perform the role physically, he will.
Evidently, Hanks' lifelong love of acting that began on his high school stage is still going strong.
