Few actors are as beloved as Tom Hanks. One of the greatest actors of his generation, Hanks also seems to be a genuinely good person which makes it even easier to enjoy his work. Though he started out in the world of sitcoms and comedies, Hanks quickly proved he is also an incredibly dramatic actor as well, effortlessly jumping between both genres for his entire career.
Hanks has helped tell some of the best and most iconic cinematic stories in recent memory while working with some of the world’s best filmmakers. However, like every actor, he also has a few misfires on his resume. Here are Tom Hanks’ best and worst movies, according to IMDb.
Best: Toy Story (8.3)
Though it’s always a treat to see Hanks on screen, one of his most famous roles is one where you never seem his famous face. Hanks provided a pitch-perfect voice performance as Woody in the series Toy Story which helped launch Pixar into the animation giant it is today.
This first film in the franchise introduces Woody, the beloved cowboy toy of a young boy named Andy who finds himself replaced with the arrival of spaceman toy Buzz Lightyear. The inventive and entertaining story is full of funny and touching moments that still delight audiences to this day.
Worst: The Bonfire Of The Vanities (5.6)
The Bonfire of The Vanities is notorious for being a movie that had so much potential and was still a massive disappointment. The film was based on the renowned novel, directed by the great Brian De Palma and featured an incredible cast that included Hank, Bruce Willis, and Morgan Freeman.
Hanks plays a hotshot Wall Street man who becomes the target of public opinion following an accident involving his mistress. Not only was the film a box office bomb, but it failed to interest most audiences or critics despite the talent involved.
Best: Toy Story 3 (8.3)
Hanks returns to the role of Woody and once again proves that he can give an amazing and heartfelt performance with just his voice.
As Andy prepares to head to college, his few remaining toys search for a new home while Woody is determined to reunite them with their rightful owner. The movie is an exciting, hilarious and emotional journey for Woody and the other toys. Though Toy Story 4 would end the franchise for good, this also ties up the story in a beautiful and bittersweet way.
Worst: Volunteers (5.5)
Hanks’ early career is filled with leading roles in comedy films. Some are fondly remembered to this day while others were quickly forgotten and left behind in the 80s. Volunteers is a film that definitely falls into the latter category.
Hanks plays a spoiled rich kid who joins the Peace Corps to escape a hefty gambling debt. He soon finds himself out of his element as a volunteer in Thailand. The result is a lame fish-out-of-water story with a sitcom premise that can be sustained for an entire movie. On the upside, Hanks met future wife Rita Wilson on this film.
Best: Saving Private Ryan (8.6)
The partnership of Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg seems like a match made in heaven and they have indeed made some great movies together. Their first collaboration, however, will be a hard one to top as Saving Private Ryan has been hailed as one of the greatest war movies of all time.
Hanks plays the captain in World War II who leads a small company on a public relations mission to find a soldier whose brothers have been killed in combat. The movie is a stirring adventure, as well as a brutally realistic look at war that immerses you in the fight like no other movie has ever done.
Worst: Ithaca (5.5)
Hanks and Meg Ryan made for one of the most beloved romantic comedy duos with their pairing in Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail. They reteamed again for a very different film, Ithaca which also served as a directorial debut for Ryan.
The movie is a coming-of-age tale of a young boy working as a telegram messenger in his hometown of Ithaca as World War II is underway. Ryan plays the boy’s mother while Hanks has a small role as his father. The small, quiet drama is presumably not the reunion between Hanks and Ryan that audiences were hoping for.
Best: The Green Mile (8.6)
The work of Stephen King has seen a resurgence on the big screen in recent years but one of the most acclaimed adaptations is Frank Darabont’s The Green Mile. Sharing some similarities to The Shawshank Redemption, this story set in the 1930s finds Hanks playing a death row prison guard whose life is changed by an unusual inmate (Michael Clarke Duncan) with a mysterious gift.
The movie is hard to place into one category as it is dramatic, eerie and fantastical all at the same time. The story is a mesmerizing and heartbreaking one with amazing performances from Hanks and Duncan.
Worst: The Circle (5.3)
Hanks is fortunate enough to be an actor who left much of his less successful work in the early parts of his career. But even now, he gets the occasional blemish in his iconic filmography. 2017’s The Circle has potential as it stars Emma Watson as a young intern who begins to rise in the ranks at a social media company only to realize it is more dangerous than she thought. Hanks plays the company’s CEO.
While its interesting to see Hanks playing a more immoral character, the movie didn’t offer much beyond that. While it clearly hopes to be a Black Mirror-type story, it offers nothing new to the conversation of social media and privacy.
Best: Forrest Gump (8.8)
With all the amazing characters Hanks has played over the years, it’s hard not to immediately associate him with the titular character in Forrest Gump. This is the story of a simple-minded young man whose kind-hearted journey through life coincides with some of the biggest moments in American history.
The movie is sappy and sentimental in all the right ways while also being genuinely hilarious and emotional. Hanks gives an iconic performance which could have become a cringe-worthy caricature in the hands of a lesser actor.
Worst: He Knows You’re Alone (5.0)
It seems that every actor is destined to do some cheap horror movie early in their career and even Hanks couldn’t escape that obligation. He Knows You’re Alone is actually the first film Hanks ever appeared in, and thankfully, it only got better from there.
The movie is pretty standard slasher film stuff about a serial killer who targets brides. The movie did not go down as one of the greats in the genre and has been forgotten by many. But even in a small role in a dismal film, Hanks stood out as a charming aspect of the film.
