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Watch Tom Hanks pretend to forget his 'Forest Gump' lines to rescue Haley Joel Osment

When his child actor co-star was struggling, Hanks knew just what to do.

Canva, Paramount Pictures, Film Freeway

Tom Hanks helps a young Haley Joel Osment during an audition

It's probably not breaking news to share that actor Tom Hanks seems to be a pretty darn nice guy. Obviously, no one is perfect, and Hanks himself admits that sometimes his "good man" image conflicts with his real-life feelings and actions on-set or otherwise.

In a Screenrant article, Hanks is quoted as setting his kindness persona aside and telling BBC News that he has at times absolutely been less-than-stellar in his life. Referring to demanding diva moments, he confesses,

"I have pulled every single one of those moments of behavior myself on a set. 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."

That said, no matter how much he might push back, there are plenty of examples of Hanks simply being above-and-beyond lovely. Many compilations have been posted about all the times Hanks has, as Business Insider puts it, been a "real-life national treasure."

Tom Hanks, movies, emotional, actor, celebrityTom Hanks in a League of Their OwnGiphy, GIF by Laff

In an article, Business Insider cites 13 adorable Hanks moments, like when he crashes weddings and takes photos with the bride and groom. He has also been a significant voice for those in need, including the LGBTQ community and military veterans—both of whom he supports immensely. He sends gifts to fans and even once "gifted a New York taxi driver with tickets to his show (Lucky Guy on Broadway) after they had a cool interaction."

But it's this resurfaced audition clip from the Oscar-winning film Forrest Gump where Tom completely seals the deal as the King of Kind:

While filming an audition for his iconic role as Forrest Gump, he runs lines with a very young actor—who, as it turns out, is Haley Joel Osment. The Insta caption (on @cineatomy's page) reads:

"During the Forrest Gump auditions, Tom Hanks pretended to forget his lines to make the young actor feel better about his own mistakes."

We begin the clip with the clapperboard revealing this is an audition for Forrest Gump. This is the second take, and R. Zemeckis is the director. Furthermore, D. Burgess is on camera and the date is July 9th, 1993.

Tom Hanks, wax figure, forrest gump, film, celebrityTom Hanks/Forrest Gump figure at Madame Tussauds Hollywood… | Flickrwww.flickr.com

In the scene, Hanks asks Osment to "read that book" to him, and as Osment does so, he stumbles on a few words. At first you hear a loud voice (possibly director Robert Zemeckis) barking the words at Osment. Hanks however, recognizing the sensitivity of the situation, exudes a calming presence.

When Osment pauses and says the line, "What, Daddy?" Hank answers gently, "Nothing, I think you read a book really good." He then pretends to forget his next line and quietly asks Osment, "Say, what I'm supposed to say?" Osment leans in and Hanks asks again, "What am I supposed to say?" Osment whispers something, and Hanks lovingly reacts, "Oh yes, yes, okay."

The next line is so fitting, as Hanks gently recites, "I just wanted to tell you that I love you."
"I love you too, Daddy," Osment replies, and Hanks puts his arm around him as if to say, "Good job!" The director laughs and yells, "Cut."

It's just a tiny little moment of kindness that seemed to come so naturally for Hanks—perhaps as a father, or a fellow actor, or again—just as a very decent man.

- Forrest Gump, Paramount Pictureswww.youtube.com

Of course, both Osment and Hanks got the parts, and, as many know, Forrest Gump went on to be a critically acclaimed film, garnering six Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for Hanks.

The comment section offers heartwarming support. Many commend Hanks on his kindness and Osment on his cuteness. Though one commenter, referencing Osment's future role in The Sixth Sense, has the perfect quip:

"I see good people."
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Celebrity

Brendan Fraser cements his comeback with an emotional Oscar win for best actor

"So this is what the multiverse looks like."

ABC/YouTube

Brendan Fraser emotionally cements his comeback.

Brendan Fraser has become everyone's favorite comeback story after his long break from Hollywood, which he attributed to being blacklisted after his 2018 interview with GQ. In the interview, he revealed that he was sexually assaulted by the former president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Philip Berk, though Berk denies the claims.

Fraser also experienced a lot of personal setbacks during his time away from Hollywood, including losing his mother, getting divorced and living with depression. But since the release of his recent hit, "The Whale," in which he plays a morbidly obese, gay father attempting to reconnect with his teenage daughter, it seems the awards keep coming and people can't get enough. Fraser's most recent win is the coveted Oscar for Best Actor, his first nomination with the Academy, and his speech was full of emotion and gratitude.

After thanking the Academy for the award, Fraser hopped right into pulling out all of the nautical stops.

“I’m grateful to Darren for throwing me a creative lifeline and hauling me aboard the good ship 'The Whale,'"Fraser said. “It was written by Samuel D. Hunter, who is our lighthouse.”

Fraser told NBC that had this role come earlier in his career, he wouldn't have had the life experience or heartache to play the character authentically. While some people took issue with him portraying a 600-pound man by wearing a fat suit in "The Whale," he continues to receive accolades for his acting in the film as evidenced by the multiple awards he has won this season.

The Oscar winner has been acting for 30 years, and while this role is more serious with a lot of depth, Fraser may be better known for his corky roles. Most people instantly recognize his big blue eyes from "George of the Jungle," "Encino Man" or "The Mummy." By all accounts, he was the shirtless poster child of the 90s, though he did start taking on more serious roles like "Crash" and "Gods and Monsters." But the film that won him an Oscar and seemed to solidify not only his comeback but his range as an actor is "The Whale."

While he kept the speech focused on the theme, his emotional reaction was echoed on the faces of others in the audience. It's clear he has a lot of cheerleaders, both in Hollywood and out.

Catch his entire acceptance speech below:

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Sacheen Littlefeather, who famously appeared in Marlon Brando's place at Oscars, has passed away

'It feels like the sacred circle is completing itself before I go in this life.'

via Wikimedia Commons

Native American activist Sacheen Littlefeather.

A little more than two weeks after receiving a formal apology from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the abuse she suffered at the 1973 Academy Awards, Native American rights activist Sacheen Littlefeather has died at age 75.

Littlefeather is a Native American civil rights activist born to an Apache and Yaqui father and a European American mother. Littlefeather made history at the 1973 Academy Awards by forcing Hollywood and America to confront its mistreatment of Native Americans by rejecting Brando's award on his behalf.

Dressed in traditional clothing, she explained that Brando "very regretfully cannot accept this generous award, the reasons for this being … the treatment of American Indians today by the film industry and on television in movie reruns, and also with recent happenings at Wounded Knee."

Littlefeather was courteous and nonconfrontational in her brief speech, but still wound up the target of jokes that night. “I don’t know if I should present this award on behalf of all the cowboys shot in all the John Ford westerns over the years,” Clint Eastwood said later in the evening while presenting the award for best picture. Presenting best actress, Raquel Welch cracked: “I hope they haven’t got a cause.”

Littlefeather later said that John Wayne attempted to assault her backstage.

"A lot of people were making money off of that racism of the Hollywood Indian," Littlefeather told KQED. "Of course, they’re going to boo. They don't want their evening interrupted."

Three months later, Brando explained his reasoning for rejecting the award on "The Dick Cavett Show."

"I felt there was an opportunity," Brando told Cavett. "Since the American Indian hasn't been able to have his voice heard anywhere in the history of the United States, I thought it was a marvelous opportunity to voice his opinion to 85 million people. I felt that he had a right to, in view of what Hollywood has done to him."

Nearly 50 years after the incident, the Academy issued a formal apology this past August.

"The abuse you endured because of this statement was unwarranted and unjustified," former Academy President David Rubin wrote in a letter to Littlefeather, CNN reported. "The emotional burden you have lived through and the cost to your own career in our industry are irreparable. For too long the courage you showed has been unacknowledged. For this, we offer both our deepest apologies and our sincere admiration."

On September 17, the Academy hosted an event honoring Littlefeather at the David Geffen Theater for more than 800 people, nearly half of which are Native American. Littlefeather asked them to stand before she formally accepted the apology.

“I am here accepting this apology, not only for me alone but as acknowledgment, knowing that it was not only for me, but for all of our nations that also need to hear and deserve this apology tonight,” she addressed the crowd. “Look at our people. Look at each other and be proud that we stand as survivors, all of us. Please, when I’m gone, always be reminded that whenever you stand for your truth, you will be keeping my voice, and the voices of our nations, and our people, alive.”

Littlefeather was also part of the Native American occupation of Alcatraz Island in 1969 and began acting with San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theater in the early ’70s. Her career in show business was derailed after the Oscars controversy and she claims she was “red-listed” from the business.

But that didn’t stop her from being a vocal activist for Native American rights throughout the rest of her life. She also worked with Greenpeace and served on the board of directors for the American Indian AIDS Institute of San Francisco.

Littlefeather’s niece confirmed that she died peacefully from breast cancer with her loved ones at her home in Marin County, California, on Sunday, October 2. The Academy’s apology in the final months of her life brought a sense of closure.

“It feels like the sacred circle is completing itself before I go in this life,” Littlefeather told the Academy. “It feels like a big cleanse, if you will, of mind, body, and spirit, and of heart. It feels that the truth will be known. And it feels like the creator is being good to me.”

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Academy apologizes to Sacheen Littlefeather for 'abuse' after she refused Marlon Brando's Oscar

"For too long the courage you showed has been unacknowledged."

via Wikimedia Commons and Wikimedia Commons

Marlon Brando and Sacheen Littlefeather.

Nearly 50 years after Sacheen Littlefeather endured boos and abusive jokes at the Academy Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is issuing a formal apology. In 1973, Littlefeather refused Marlon Brando's Best Actor Oscar on his behalf for his iconic role in “The Godfather” at the ceremony to protest the film industry’s treatment of Native Americans.

She explained that Brando "very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award, the reasons for this being … the treatment of American Indians today by the film industry and on television in movie reruns, and also with recent happenings at Wounded Knee."

Littlefeather is a Native American civil rights activist who was born to a Native American (Apache and Yaqui) father and a European American mother.

The unexpected surprise was greeted with a mixture of applause and boos from the audience and would be the butt of jokes told by presenters, including Clint Eastwood. Littlefeather later said that John Wayne attempted to assault her backstage.

"A lot of people were making money off of that racism of the Hollywood Indian," Littlefeather told KQED. "Of course, they’re going to boo. They don't want their evening interrupted."

The Academy is apologizing for what she endured with “an evening of conversation, reflection, healing, and celebration with Littlefeather” on September 17, 2022, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, it announced on its blog.

"The abuse you endured because of this statement was unwarranted and unjustified," former Academy president David Rubin wrote in a letter to Littlefeather, CNN reports. "The emotional burden you have lived through and the cost to your own career in our industry are irreparable. For too long the courage you showed has been unacknowledged. For this, we offer both our deepest apologies and our sincere admiration."

Littlefeather said in a statement that the event is "a dream come true" and joked that “we Indians are very patient people—it's only been 50 years! We need to keep our sense of humor about this at all times. It's our method of survival."

It’s sure to be a cathartic evening for Littlefeather.

"People don't realize what my experience was. They had absolutely no idea—none—of what my experience was, what I went through," Littlefeather told the Academy. "And now, I'm here to tell my story the way that it was from my point of view, from my experience."

“It feels like the sacred circle is completing itself before I go in this life,” Littlefeather, 75, added. “It feels like a big cleanse, if you will, of mind, body, and spirit, and of heart. It feels that the truth will be known. And it feels like the creator is being good to me.”

Brando passed away in 2014 but would probably be excited for Littlefeather’s long overdue apology. Three months after she refused the award on his behalf, he explained his rationale for rejecting the Oscar on “The Dick Cavett Show.” The interview was historic because Brando was known for avoiding the media, it was also far ahead of its time given the climate in Hollywood surrounding people of color in 1973.

"I felt that there was an opportunity," Brando calmly told Cavett about the awards ceremony. "Since the American Indian hasn't been able to have his voice heard anywhere in the history of the United States, I felt that it was a marvelous opportunity for an Indian to be able to voice his opinion to 85 million people, I guess that was the number. I felt that he had a right to, in view of what Hollywood has done to him."

“The Godfather” star then expanded his thoughts on representation to include all people of color.

“I don't think people realize what the motion picture industry has done to the American Indian, and as a matter of fact, all ethnic groups. All minorities. All non-whites,” he said. “So when someone makes a protest of some kind and says, 'No, please don't present the Chinese this way.' ... On this network, you can see silly renditions of human behavior. The leering Filipino houseboy, the wily Japanese or the kook or the gook. The idiot Black man, the stupid Indian. It goes on and on and on, and people actually don't realize how deeply these people are injured by seeing themselves represented—not the adults, who are already inured to that kind of pain and pressure, but the children. Indian children, seeing Indians represented as savage, as ugly, as nasty, vicious, treacherous, drunken—they grow up only with a negative image of themselves, and it lasts a lifetime.”

Hollywood is still far from ideal when it comes to being truly representative of America at large. But it is miles ahead of where it was in 1973 when the film industry, including some of its biggest stars, was outwardly hostile toward the idea of representation.

The Academy’s public apology should give some closure to Littlefeather and provide hope to countless others. Because when an industry honestly confronts its past mistakes, it makes a promise that it’ll be less likely to commit them in the future.


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