Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks photos: His life and career through the years, from ‘Big’ to a Harvard degree
Since his first Oscar nomination for 1998’s “Big,” Tom Hanks has built quite a legacy in Hollywood with beloved films like “Sleepless in Seattle,” “Forrest Gump,” “Saving Private Ryan” and “Cast Away.” He has plenty of goodwill and accolades to boot, too. Take a trip down memory lane with his films and accomplishments over the years.
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Hanks was childishly perfect in the 1988 film “Big,” in which he starred as a 12-year-old whose wish to become big gets granted by a carnival machine. The film earned Hanks his first Oscar nomination for best actor.
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Hanks starred as Seattle widower Sam Baldwin in the 1993 film “Sleepless in Seattle.”
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From left to right, here’s Hanks, Holly Hunter, Anna Paquin and Tommy Lee Jones posing with their Oscars at the Academy Awards in 1994. Hanks won best actor for his role in “Philadelphia.”
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Hanks also starred as the title role in the classic 1994 film “Forrest Gump.” In a famous scene, Hanks, as Forrest, sits on a bench and compares life to a box of chocolates.
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His turn as Forrest Gump won Hanks a Screen Actors Guild Award. After accepting the trophy, Hanks showed off his Screen Actors Guild card, which he received in 1980 for the pilot episode of the sitcom “Bosom Buddies.”
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Hanks directed Tom Everett Scott, left, and Steven Zahn in the 1996 film “That Thing You Do!” Hanks starred as a record representative, Mr. White.
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Hanks won his second Oscar in 1995 for his “Forrest Gump” best actor performance. Since then he’s been nominated for three more Oscars, without a win.
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He celebrated the win with a smooch from his wife, actress Rita Wilson. The couple have been married since 1988.
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Hanks met astronaut Jim Lovell, the real-life commander from “Apollo 13,” and then-President Bill Clinton in 1995.
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Hanks starred as Captain Miller in the 1998 film “Saving Private Ryan.”
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Spielberg directed Hanks in the World War II drama. Spielberg took a best directing Oscar, Hanks was nominated for best actor, and “Saving Private Ryan” was nominated for best picture.
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Hanks took home an Emmy in 1998 for the mini-series “From the Earth to the Moon.”
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Hanks appeared alongside Meg Ryan in the 1998 romantic comedy “You’ve Got Mail.”
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Hanks rocked a scruffier look while Wilson dazzled in a shimmering silver gown at the Oscars in 1999.
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Hanks tapped into his wild side for the 2000 survival drama “Cast Away.”
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Hanks won a Golden Globe for best actor in a drama in 2001 for his performance in “Cast Away.”
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Hanks pointed at the camera alongside Wilson at the world premiere of “Mamma Mia!” in 2008. The couple were executive producers on the film.
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Hanks won an Emmy for best limited series in 2008 for “John Adams,” for which he was an executive producer.
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Hanks rocked some glasses next to Wilson at the Golden Globes in 2009.
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Hanks read historical passages at Barack Obama’s presidential inauguration in 2009.
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Hanks and Spielberg helped place a wreath at the Pacific section of the WWII Memorial in 2010.
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Hanks smiled alongside Oscar winners Karen O’Hara and Robert Stromberg at the Academy Awards in 2011.
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Hanks and Sandra Bullock shared an on-screen kiss in the 2011 film “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.”
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Hanks presented the Oscar for achievement in cinematography to Robert Richardson in 2012 for the film “Hugo.”
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Hanks performed alongside Courtney B. Vance in the Broadway play “Lucky Guy.”
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Wilson and Hanks also went to the Tony Awards that year, where he was nominated for the lead actor.
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Hanks starred as Walt Disney alongside Emma Thompson as “Mary Poppins” author P.L. Travers in the 2013 film “Saving Mr. Banks.”
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Hanks starred in the 2013 film “Captain Phillips” with Barkhad Abdi, left, and Faysal Ahmed.
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Hanks spoke at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ screening of “Captain Phillips” on October 7, 2013.
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The actor rocked a scarf while Wilson donned a leather jacket in Paris on October 12, 2013.
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Thompson and Hanks hammed it up at the world premiere of “Saving Mr. Banks” in London’s Leicester Square on October 20, 2013.
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Hanks brought a cup of tea as he greeted reporters at the premiere.
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Hanks, Bullock and Bradley Cooper arrived in style to the Palm Springs International Film Festival on January 4, 2014.
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Wilson and Hanks palled around with boxer Mike Tyson at HBO’s Golden Globes afterparty on January 12, 2014.
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Hanks poured some champagne during the Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2014.
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Hanks and Wilson walked the red carpet during the 27th Annual Kennedy Center Honors at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on December 7, 2014 in Washington, DC.
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From left to right, Chris Kattan, Hanks and Will Ferrell performed in a “Roxbury Guys” skit on “Saturday Night Live” on September 28, 1996.
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He grabbed the mic during the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 8th annual Governors Awards on November 12, 2016 in Hollywood, California.
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Former President Barack Obama presented Hanks with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, during a ceremony at the White House on Nov. 22, 2016.
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He accepted the award for Favorite Dramatic Movie Actor during the People’s Choice Awards on January 18, 2017.
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Emma Watson posed with Hanks at the afterparty for “The Circle” during the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival on April 26, 2017.
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Dwayne Johnson and Hanks were doused in confetti on “Saturday Night Live” on May 20, 2017.
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Hanks and son Colin attended a screening for “The Great Buck Howard” at the Tribeca Grand Screening Room on March 10, 2009 in New York City.
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Hanks starred as the gentle Fred Rogers in the 2019 film “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,” which earned him an Oscar nomination.
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Hanks played Captain Krause in 2020’s “Greyhound.”
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Hanks presented the award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role during Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2020.
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Hanks accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award, presented by Charlize Theron, onstage during the 77th annual Golden Globe Awards on January 5, 2020.
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On Jan. 20, 2021, Hanks hosted and spoke during the Celebrating America Primetime Special, which was livestreamed due to the pandemic.
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Tom Hanks posed with the robot Dewey from his 2021 film “Finch” at the Los Angeles premiere on Nov. 2, 2021.
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Tom Hanks and Larry Doby Jr. shake hands after Hanks threw out the first pitch to Doby before the game between the Cleveland Guardians and the San Francisco Giants at Progressive Field on April 15, 2022.
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“Forrest Gump” collaborators Robert Zemeckis and Tom Hanks teamed up again for 2022’s “Pinocchio.”
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Hanks posed with his co-star Smeagol the cat at a special screening of his 2023 film “A Man Called Otto” at Dot Dash Meredith in New York City on Jan. 9, 2023.
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Truman Hanks joined his dad for a promotional event for “A Man Called Otto” in London on Dec. 16, 2022.
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Hanks (right) was the Colonel Tom Parker to Austin Butler’s (left) Elvis in director Baz Luhrmann’s (center) 2022 film “Elvis.”
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Hanks was part of a stacked cast in Wes Anderson’s 203 film “Asteroid City,” which screened at the 76th Cannes Film Festival on May 23, 2023.Here he is with co-star Scarlett Johansson.
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After two years at a community college, another two years at a state school in California and “45 years at the School of Hard Knocks, earning a Bachelor of Arts Degree in One-Damn-Thing-After-Another,” Hanks finally earned his degree from … Harvard? The university awarded Hanks with an honorary degree in 2023, and he delivered the graduating class’ commencement speech on May 25, 2023.
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Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson attend a reception celebrating Greek Independence Day, hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden, at the White House in Washington D.C. on March 29, 2023.
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Hanks and Robin Wright reunited alongside director Robert Zemeckis and his co-writer Eric Roth (not pictured) for 2024’s “Here,” which employed a fixed-camera position to show how life, and people, change over millions of years.
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The Los Angeles premiere for Apple TV+’s “Masters Of The Air” brought the family together. Chet Hanks, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson and Truman Hanks posed together at the Regency Village Theatre on Jan. 10, 2024.
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Tom Hanks attends the 14th Governors Awards in Los Angeles on Jan. 9, 2024. Though he earned three Oscar nominations following his 1994 win for “Forrest Gump,” Hanks hasn’t gotten his hands on another statuette for his acting in the decades since.
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Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson attend the Academy Museum Gala fundraiser at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles on Oct. 19, 2024.
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Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson attend the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Governors Awards at the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles on Nov. 17, 2024.
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Anna-Maria Babcock, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson and Brittany Howard attend “SNL50: The Anniversary Special” on Feb. 16, 2025, in New York City.
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Tom Hanks reprised his role of Trump supporter Doug (first introduced on “Saturday Night Live” in 2016) in the “Black Jeopardy” sketch during the “SNL50” anniversary special that aired Feb. 16, 2025, alongside contestants Leslie Jones as Shanice and Tracy Morgan as Darius. Hanks’ character, who wore a “Make America Great Again” hat and recoiled from a handshake with Kenan Thompson’s character, drew backlash from the likes of Meghan McCain.
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