As a veteran actor, Tom Hanks has had a go as several real-life people. But of all the people he’s played for the silver screen, Hanks says Fred Rogers was completely different from the others.
The two-time Oscar-winner explains why to Entertainment Tonight as he attended this year’s Toronto International Film Festival last Saturday. Speaking to the entertainment news outlet, Hanks noted that his previous true-to-life roles had “a moment in which they were trying to achieve something that was of stellar importance.”
Differentiating Fred Rogers from his past roles as Walt Disney, Chesley Sullenberger and Charlie Wilson, the actor says he “is the first person I’ve played that is not undergoing the great crisis of their business or their lives.” See the trailer for A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood below:
He then explained that Walt Disney in Saving Mr. Banks “wanted to get a movie done, Sully had to save 156 people, Charlie Wilson’s War, he wanted to go to bat with the Soviet Union.” But as for Fred Rogers, Hanks says he didn’t have anything on his plate as momentous as the others, pointing out that he only wanted people to “understand themselves and the world a little bit better.”
Hanks’ newest film follows the story of Lloyd Vogel played by Matthew Rhys as he writes a profile article on Fred Rogers. During which time, the jaded journalist’s indifferent outlook towards life is ultimately impacted by Fred Rogers.
Catch everyone’s favorite leading man on his new film as it hits theaters on November 22.