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Tom Hanks has the kind of filmography that every actor strives for, but rarely a few achieves. Appearing in the industry since the 1980s, Hanks made some splendid headlines for his beloved movies and even received globally acclaimed awards and nominations.
Despite filling his resume with films likeForrest Gump,Saving Private Ryan, and theToy Storyfilm series, the legendary actor stepped away from the 1990s biggest hitJerry Maguire. Leaving out the lead role of Jerry Maguire for Tom Cruise, theSplashactor later mentioned not having any regret over the $273M movie.
Also read:Tom Cruise Has Proved His Stardom Again and Again as He Has Grossed Over $8.4 Billion Worldwide With His Movies
Jerry MaguireWas Originally Written For Tom Hanks
Being a beloved movie star from the 80s,Tom Hankshas majorly been the director’s first preference for several roles. Thus, having a packed schedule, it wasn’t always possible for Hanks to accept every role that came his way. However, often accepting brilliant scripts and headline-evoking roles, the actor failed to appear in Cameron Crowe’sJerry Maguire.
Reflecting upon hisJerry Maguirejourney,Cameron Croweappeared for an interview withDeadline. Mentioning how the titular role was initially written for Hanks, Crowe mentioned eventually settling for Tom Cruise. “The idea was, let’s not be slaves to writing this as a Tom Hanks in capital letters movie, but let’s have Tom Hanks on our minds as a guy who would play Jerry Maguire,” Crowe stated.
Discussing the journey from Hanks to Cruise, Crowe detailed how “Hanks got more and more into that white-hot heat of super stardom”.He further explained “I always did think, well, if Tom Hanks doesn’t do this, who would be the dream Jerry Maguire? More and more over time, that was Tom Cruise.” Although the director originally wrote the lead character for Hanks, and desperately wanted him to play the role, it eventually went to Tom Cruise who even got Oscar nominations for his pivotal appearance.
Also read:Tom Cruise’s Extreme Loyalty to Jerry Maguire Director Made Him Lose $316M Oscar-Winning Picture That Went to Sworn Enemy Russell Crowe
Tom Hanks Doesn’t Regret Losing $273M Role To Tom Cruise
Willing to divert himself from acting for a while and dive into directing, Tom Hanks rejected the role of Cameron Crowe’sJerry Maguire. Coming up withThat Thing You Do!as his directorial debut, Hanks thereafter repeatedly choose his passion projects over classic movies. However, given the enormity of Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise, the casting ofJerry Maguirehappens to be Hollywood’s most fascinating what-ifs of all time.
Standing by his decision and believing in Cruise, theToy Storyactor turned down the $273M movie, that landed Cruise with an Oscar nomination. Writer-director Cameron Crowe initially reached out to Tom Hanks, however by the time he finished his screenplay Hanks was no longer in the position to take up the role.
“I took so long doing the script that Hanks was no longer a 35-year-old man. By the time he got (the script), he was almost 40 and had two Academy Awards and wanted to direct.” Crowe explained toEmpiremagazine in 1997.
Despite watchingTom Cruisebagging an Academy Award nomination and Golden Globe win, for his role as Jerry Maguire, Tom Hanks repeatedly confessed having no regrets over turning down the movie. Graciously admitting, “I think you look at it now and it couldn’t have been anybody other than Tom Cruise” Hanks even joked about Cruise owing him a dollar for Jerry Maguire.
Watch Cameron Crowe directedJerry Maguire(1996) on Amazon Prime Video.
Read more:“That was an incredibly important movie for me”: Tom Hanks is Heartbroken for Fans Ignoring His $183M Comic-Book Adapted Movie by James Bond Director
Source:Deadline,Whatculture
Krittika Mukherjee
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3218
Krittika Mukherjee is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on films, TV shows, and celebrity news with over 3,000 articles published. With an educational background in Journalism, and a keen interest in filmmaking, Krittika blends factual precision with creative flair, when crafting her editorials, or dissecting fan theories.Her coverage often includes news and analyses of critically acclaimed films, celebrity news, and franchises like the Wizarding World, LOTR, DC, and MCU—particularly Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts, Superheroes, and fan theories. As a Wizarding World aficionado, Krittika has spent countless hours exploring hidden backstories, unadapted book moments, spells, and trivias surrounding J.K. Rowling’s lore.An imaginative writer with a way with words, Krittika has worked as an entertainment journalist for the past two years and a web content writer for a year. She brought her experience and expertise to FandomWire to pursue her desire for sipping coffee while dissecting films and tracking celebrity drama.
