Tom Hanks Admits to Bad Behavior on Movie Sets in the Past

Movie star Tom Hanks also likes to flex his hands in the book-writing business, but he may have blended reality and fiction a little too closely in his new novel The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece. The story follows the making of a major Hollywood blockbuster based on a comic book, as it goes through the creative stages of writing, casting, and production. Needless to say, not all the characters are well-behaved. 

Tom Hanks revealed in a new interview about Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece that some of the “characters” that end up misbehaving, having meltdowns, or mistreating others on set are entirely based upon his own worst days making movies: 

“I have pulled every single one of those moments of behavior myself on a set,” Hanks told  BBC News. “Not everybody is at their best every single day on a motion picture set. I’ve had tough days trying to be a professional when my life has been falling apart in more ways than one and the requirement for me that day is to be funny, charming, and loving – and it’s the last way I feel.”

The multi-Oscar-winning actor also hinted that other accounts that are “fictionally” depicted in the novel may reflect some of the experiences Hanks has had working with some famous people that are actually not-so-nice: “You will be amazed at how many people know that they can get away with it, and are told they can get away with it because they are carrying the movie on their shoulders,” Hanks said.

At this point, no one should be at all surprised to learn that actors act for a living and that those onscreen personas are complete and utter fictions, compared to who they are in real life. Tom Hanks included. 

…At the same time, it’s probably good to remind ourselves that actors being flawed humans doesn’t automatically prove some of the more outlandish conspiracies we hear about Hollywood.

You can read a full synopsis of The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, below: 

From the legendary actor and best-selling author: a novel about the making of a star-studded, multimillion-dollar superhero action film…and the humble comic books that inspired it. Funny, touching, and wonderfully thought-provoking, while also capturing the changes in America and American culture since World War II.

Part One of this story takes place in 1947. A troubled soldier, returning from the war, meets his talented five-year-old nephew, leaves an indelible impression, and then disappears for twenty-three years.

Cut to 1970: The nephew, now drawing underground comic books in Oakland, California, reconnects with his uncle and, remembering the comic book he saw when he was five, draws a new version with his uncle as a World War II fighting hero.

Cut to the present day: A commercially successful director discovers the 1970 comic book and decides to turn it into a contemporary superhero movie.

Cue the cast: We meet the film’s extremely difficult male star, his wonderful leading lady, the eccentric writer/director, the producer, the gofer production assistant, and everyone else on both sides of the camera.

Bonus material: Interspersed throughout are three comic books that are featured in the story-all created by Tom Hanks himself-including the comic book that becomes the official tie-in to this novel’s “major motion picture masterpiece.”

Via: PopCulture