Tom Hanks says talks about potential Forrest Gump sequel ‘lasted all of 40 minutes’

‘We said, ‘Guys, come on,’” Hanks said

Tom Hanks has said that discussions about a potential Forrest Gump sequel ended after just 40 minutes.

The actor starred in the six-time Oscar winning film as Forrest, a kind-hearted man living in Alabama in the 20th century. It is considered to be one of Hanks’ most famous roles.

Appearing on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Hanks was asked why so few of his most famous films had been given sequels.

The actor said that, while he was intrigued by the new Bollywood remake of Forrest Gump, he didn’t have an interest in reprising any of his old characters.

“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 actor said that he would only return to a character if he felt that there was a strong enough story for them to return.

“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.’”

Hanks said talks about reprising the film fell through after 40 minutes (Getty Images)

“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.”

In 2020, Hanks revealed that he and director Robert Zemeckis both paid for numerous scenes to be shot in Forrest Gump out of their own pockets when Paramount refused to fund them.

One of the sequences in question is when Gump is seen running across America in the middle of the movie. According to Hanks, Paramount said it was too expensive, even though Zemeckis had argued it was vital to shoot.