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Credit: \t20th Century Fox<\/p>\n
Mon 7 September 2026 18:15, UK <\/p>\n
Anybody who\u2019s ever worked a day in their life will tell you that it isn\u2019t supposed to be sunshine and roses all day, every day, and just because Tom Hanks<\/a> gets paid millions to do his job, it doesn\u2019t disqualify him from being a miserable bastard, just like everyone else has been at one point or another.<\/p>\n Admittedly, it helps that, unlike most people, the two-time Academy Award winner can finish a tough day at the office by returning to either his palatial mansion or luxurious trailer, sleeping soundly in the knowledge that dressing up and playing pretend is hardly the most taxing profession on the planet.<\/p>\n Actors are often described as a pampered and pompous bunch, and rightly so, but you can\u2019t say that Hanks didn\u2019t put the effort in. It was a monumental undertaking from beginning to end, and by the end of it, it\u2019s not even hyperbolic to say that he\u2019d literally laid his life on the line in the name of performance.<\/p>\n For the most part, \u2018America\u2019s Dad\u2019 doesn\u2019t really play the kind of roles that pose a serious risk to one\u2019s health. However, when he did, dropping a dangerous amount of weight in a short period of time to headline Robert Zemeckis\u2019 Cast Away as Chuck Noland, it almost killed him<\/a>.<\/p>\n Then again, it was a game of two halves. Before production kicked off in January 1999, the star had to pile on the pounds to play the schlubby FedEx employee. \u201cFor the first half, I didn\u2019t do anything,\u201d Hanks confessed. \u201cI did not do a thing except eat.\u201d After that, though, things became pretty dire.<\/p>\n During the shutdown, with Zemeckis using the time to film What Lies Beneath<\/a> to keep himself and the Cast Away crew busy, his leading man shed 55 pounds in short order. \u201cTaking that into account,\u201d Hanks pondered. \u201cThe physicality of the movie was\u2026 back-breaking. No fun for anybody. Just arduous, and difficult, and back-breaking.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite being emaciated, bearded, and looking very much like a man who\u2019d spent years in isolation on a deserted island with only a volleyball for company, Cast Away \u201cwas a great freedom\u201d for the actor, who didn\u2019t carry any self-consciousness onto the set \u201cbecause you\u2019re going to look terrible whatever you do.\u201d<\/p>\n Further reading: Cutting Room Floor<\/p>\n Was it worth it? In terms of his performance, you\u2019d have to say yes, since it comfortably ranks as one of Hanks\u2019 finest turns, and it landed him a \u2018Best Actor\u2019 nomination at the Academy Awards. On the other hand, almost dying for your art doesn\u2019t sound like a fun time<\/a>, and it\u2019s absolutely not a coincidence that he\u2019s never embarked on such a dramatic body transformation ever again.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re going to play the titular character in a film called Cast Away, there\u2019s no other choice but to go all-in, otherwise the audience won\u2019t buy it for a second. That\u2019s what he did, and physically, emotionally, and psychologically, the star paid a fairly hefty price.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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