Posted in: Movies, Paramount Pictures | Tagged: forrest gump, Gump and Co, Happy Sad Confused, Paramount Pictures, pinocchio, robert zemeckis, tom hanks, Winston Groom

Forrest Gump Sequel Talk Only Serious for 40 Minutes Tom Hanks Says

Tom Hanks is not known for having loose ends in Hollywood, but one did emerge when there were talks about a Forrest Gump sequel. The sequel would have been based on original "Gump" author Winston Groom's follow-up book "Gump and Co", which was published in 1995. Groom published "Forrest Gump" in 1986, which Paramount Pictures adapted theatrically in 1994 garnering six Oscars including Best Picture and Best Actor honors for Hanks. The Pinocchio star opened up to the Happy Sad Confused podcast about what progress, if any, was made on the project before it was abandoned.

"I will say that, with a long time in between, we did take a stab at talking about another 'Forrest Gump' that lasted all of 40 minutes," Hanks said. "And then we never…we said, 'Guys, come on.'" The film was not only a critical success but also became the top-grossing film of 1994 garnering $678 million worldwide. Unfortunately, the sequel never took shape for Hanks and director Robert Zemeckis, who also won an Academy Award for the 1994 film that also starred Robin Wright, Sally Field and Gary Sinise. Hanks played the title character, a slow mentally-challenged everyman who helps shape the American experience in the 20th century.

"A smart thing I did is I've never signed a contract that had a contractual obligation to a sequel," Hanks said. "I've always said, 'Guys, if there's a reason to do it, let's do it. But you guys can't force me.' There is that natural inclination that is one of pure commerce that says, 'Hey, you just had a hit, so do it again and you'll have a hit.'" The actor also isn't really known to work on sequels aside from the Toy Story and Dan Brown's Robert Langdon franchises. Hanks and Zemeckis have since reunited for 2000's Cast Away and the live-action adaptation of Pinocchio. The film, which also stars Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Keegan-Michael Key, Cynthia Erivo, and Luke Evans, is currently available on Disney+. And that's all I have to say about that.

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