‘He treats his actors like he treats horses’: Tom Hanks recalls working with Clint Eastwood

Tom Hanks is one of the most charismatic and beloved actors in Hollywood. After a career spanning more than 40 years, the versatile actor left us with roles we will never forget, including the one for which he won two consecutive Oscars in 1994 and 1995: Andrew Beckett’s Philadelphia and Forrest Gump. The cult film of the same name.

similarly, Tom Hanks He said goodbye to the 20th century with two classics, Saving Private Ryan and The Green Line, before welcoming the 21st century with another cinematic monument, Alone in the World. Finally, over the past 20 years, we’ve seen the veteran Hollywood star reinvent himself with great new roles, from Catch Me If You and The Terminal to the recent Spies and Bridge of Lightning.

With such a career, she had the opportunity to shoot with great directors: Steven Spielberg, Robert Zemecki, Wes Anderson, Baz Luhrmann, Sam Mendes and the Wachowski sisters, and the first two had the privilege of starring at least five times. Each – counts the following Here of Robert Zemeckis.

But it wasn’t until 2016 that he had the first and for the moment last opportunity to work on a film directed by one of Hollywood’s great living legends: Clint Eastwood.

It was for the biography Sully, in which Tom Hanks Step into the shoes of real-life American pilot Chesley Burnett “Sully” Sullenberger, who in 2009 performed an impossible maneuver and saved 155 lives. During this incident, which will remain in history “Miracle on the Hudson”. “, a flock of geese collided with the engines of an Airbus A320 piloted by Sally, who then managed to perform a dangerous maneuver and make an emergency landing on the waters of the Hudson. However, his status as a national hero did not last long and he later had to defend himself against the charges.

When it was released in 2016, Sally It was well received by critics and the public and was a huge success at the box office.

Eastwood method

When you’re shooting with so many filmmakers, you have to know how to adapt to different temperaments. Like her former screen partner Matt Damon, Tom Hanks Thus I was impressed by the pragmatism Clint EastwoodKnown for not bothering anyone or anything on the set – even when a fire broke out near the studio where he was filming, Eastwood just kept on shooting…

Speaking on the set of Jimmy Kimmel Live in 2016, Tom Hanks He said of the director, “He treats his actors like horses,” before explaining why.

“It’s like saying, “Guess what, Mount Rushmore just came down from South Dakota and you’re working for him now.” He is clearly a responsible person when he comes to the sets. You just want to please him. You don’t want to look into his eyes for too long because he has that look, you know? And you don’t want to experience that.“

He went on to say that in other films, directors like to put on a big show before calling the action. He imitated them so truthfully that the audience applauded his performance!

however, Clint Eastwood He has his own way: he raises his finger and makes a circle to indicate that everything is spinning, and the other members of the camera crew imitate him: “And then he stands next to you and says, “Okay, go.” And you do it, and maybe he says, ‘Do it again. Do it again.’ You do that and he says, “Okay, that’s enough.”“

Tom Hanks Then he asked where his method came from, what Clint Eastwood replied that when he was making the 1960s series, Rawhide, there were all these old directors who loved megaphones and attention.

“So he and everyone else in Rawhide were on their horses and they had to have a conversation and all this preparation and ‘ACTION!’ The horses panicked. So one day he just said in his inaudible way, “Could you just tell us ‘Go’ instead of ‘Action’ so the horses don’t run off?”“

Therefore, after becoming a director himself, Clint Eastwood “Treats its actors like horses” as “Action” says – or rather doesn’t say.

Watch his impersonation of directors and his comments about Clint Eastwood in the video below:

Sally can still be seen streaming on Max.

A similar article has already been published on our Spanish site Sensacine.com.