Tom Hanks speaks out about his LGBT role in ‘Philadelphia’, an Oscar-winning drama

65-year-old Tom Hanks gave a long interview to The New York Times, in which he explained in detail why, in the current realities, he would not agree to the role of lawyer Andrew Beckett in the 1993 film Philadelphia, despite the fact that 28 years ago he received for it coveted Oscar. In the story, his character is fired from a law firm for incompetence. However, the true reason for the reduction is the non-traditional orientation of the hero and the presence of an AIDS diagnosis. Now Hanks believes that such a role, by definition, cannot be played by a straight actor.

Philadelphia’s message is to convey the message “Don’t be afraid.” One of the reasons people accepted this movie was because I played the main character. But then it was a different time. I don’t think viewers would agree now that a straight guy would portray a gay man,” he said.

The actor also spoke about why he decided to distance himself from social networks and stopped publishing content.

I stopped posting because I think it’s useless. I already have enough attention.

Recall that the picture “Philadelphia” brought Hanks the first Oscar in his career and world fame. His co-stars on the set were Denzel Washington and Antonio Banderas. Hanks’ latest highlight is Baz Luhrmann’s new film Elvis, in which he plays the manager of rock and roll king Tom Parker.