Why Tom Hanks Thought 'Forrest Gump' Wouldn't Be Successful

Forrest Gump is one of Tom Hanks' biggest films, but the actor wasn't always sure it'd be a hit.

At a New Yorker Live event, where he was promoting his novel The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece (per Deadline), Hanks spoke about his skepticism towards the movie.

"I say, 'Hey Bob, I've got a question for you. Is anybody going to care about this movie? This guy sitting on a thing in these goofy shoes and this cuckoo suit with a suitcase full of Curious George books and stuff like that… are we doing anything here that is going to make any sense to anybody?'" he recalled asking director Robert Zemeckis.

The Oscar winner said Zemeckis was equally skeptical and told Hanks, "It's a minefield, Tom. It's a minefield. We may be sowing the seeds of our own destruction. Any footstep we take can be a Bouncing Betty that'll blow our nuts right off."

Hanks added, "Bob Zemeckis—God bless him, I've worked with him more than once—landed on the absolute truth of anybody who has gone forward and said, 'We are going to commit to something to film today, and eventually we'll cut this into something. You don't know if it's going to work or not."

Thankfully, it did work. The 1994 flick received a whopping six Academy Awards, for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Visual Effects, and Best Film Editing, and, at the time of its release, the movie became the fastest Paramount project to gross $100 million.

Next: Tom Hanks Admits We Almost Got Another 'Forrest Gump' Movie