Tom Hanks is headed back to Broadway. <\/p>\n
Starting in 2027, the Academy Award-winning actor will not only star alongside actress Kelli O\u2019Hara<\/a>, but he\u2019s also a co-writer on the play. <\/p>\n Here\u2019s what we know about Hanks\u2019 Broadway return so far. <\/p>\n What we know about \u2018This World of Tomorrow\u2019 <\/p>\n Called \u201cThis World of Tomorrow,\u201d the play is described as a \u201ctime-travel romance\u201d based on short stories written by Hanks and published in his 2017 collection \u201cUncommon Type.\u201d Hanks adapted the play for the stage with playwright James Glossman. <\/p>\n The play tells the story of Bert Allenberry (who will be played by Hanks), who lives at the end of the 21st century and travels back in time to try to change his past. \u201cWhen Bert journeys back \u2014 again, and again, and again \u2014 to one remarkable day at the 1939 New York World\u2019s Fair in Queens, he discovers that the future is shaped not by technology, but by the choices we make for love,\u201d according to the play\u2019s synopsis, per Deadline<\/a>.<\/p>\n O\u2019Hara \u2014 a Tony Award-winning actress best known for her work on Broadway, who also performed at the 2019 Christmas concert with the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square<\/a> \u2014 will star as Carmen, a woman that Bert meets in the past. She and Hanks also co-starred in the play\u2019s off-Broadway production, which ran for eight weeks at The Shed in Manhattan last year. <\/p>\n Tony Award-winning director Kenny Leon, who also directed the play at The Shed, will be returning for the Broadway production.<\/p>\n What people are saying about \u2018This World of Tomorrow\u2019 <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m so excited to continue this work on this amazing new American play,\u201d Leon said in a statement, per Deadline<\/a>. \u201cThere\u2019s no time like the present to further explore this story of love and time travel from Glossman and Hanks. More than anything, I look forward to even more audiences who will have the chance to witness the onstage chemistry of Kelli O\u2019Hara and Tom Hanks.\u201d <\/p>\n Hanks spoke to Playbill<\/a> last year about the themes of the play. <\/p>\n \u201cIf they hadn\u2019t gone to the World\u2019s Fair in 1939, they would not have met the great love of their life. And I\u2019m going to tell you right now, even you have moments like that in your life,\u201d he told the outlet. \u201cThat\u2019s the study of history. And I have always been fascinated by that odd aspect of human behavior that says: Things only happen when you\u2019re in the right place at the right time, and you have no idea if you are in the right place or if the time is right to be there \u2014 history just sort of decides that for you. And I think that\u2019s fascinating.\u201d<\/p>\n He also talked to former late-night host Stephen Colbert in November 2025 about what it was like to star in a play that he helped to write, admitting that he had already forgotten some lines during a performance, People<\/a> magazine reported. <\/p>\n When Colbert asked if it felt different to perform work that he had written, Hanks replied, \u201cYes it is. No. 1 because, they are gonna have a real hard time firing me if I screw up.\u201d<\/p>\n When was the last time Tom Hanks was on Broadway? <\/p>\n Hanks has only appeared on Broadway one other time \u2014 in Nora Ephron\u2019s play \u201cLucky Guy\u201d in 2013, for which he was nominated for a Tony Award. <\/p>\n When will \u2018This World of Tomorrow\u2019 open on Broadway? <\/p>\n