io9: tom hanks

Tom Hanks Talks Becoming A Wild Thing, Plus Toy Story 3

Meredith Woerner — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 08:00:00 PDT

We caught up with Wild Things producer Tom Hanks on the carpet last night for the big premiere, to chat about wild rumpusing — and learned that there's more than one new plaything appearing in the third Toy Story movie.

Things were a bit chaotic on the carpet last night but we managed to get a few moments with Hollywood's favorite everyman. Including how he got involved in Where The Wild Things Are, and hints about the Toy Story 3 storyline.

How did you get involved in this production?

I called up Maurice Sendack about 10 or 12 years ago, and said, "look you don't know me but I'm a big fan of your book, and if you ever want to make it into a movie, let us help you...

They shot this in Australia. And once they got going they were working on it full force. I was just saying, "What can we help do?" There's nothing more extraneous than a producer on set saying, "Hey, what time's lunch?" I didn't need to do that, Spike was in good hands.

Will you bring your kids to see this movie?

Yes, well, all my kids were all grown up.

Who are the new Toys in Toy Story 3?

There's a ton of them and I think I'm not allowed to say.

Not even one little toy?

I think contractually if I say anything, the legal team of the Walt Disney company will swoop down and grab up all your [recorders] [Hanks then jokingly grabs up all the reporters' recorders].

You're a space fan, what did you think about NASA blowing up the moon?

Oh, that was fantastic, I wish we could have actually seen it — what a brilliant idea. You smash in a thing and make it cloudy, and fly the space craft through it. Who was the genius that came up with that?

Tom Hanks Explains His Antimatter Issues With Star Trek

Meredith Woerner — Wed, 13 May 2009 11:20:12 PDT

Our lovable everyman, Tom Hanks, stopped by the Daily Show to talk Angels and Demons and the big antimatter problem, which incidentally isn't a problem at all. So what's the deal with Trek then?

Oh those crazy scientists with their buttons, dials and knobs. Also did he just negate the threat to his new movie? Watch the entire interview at the Daily Show.

Tom Hanks Wants To Be Your Space Doll

Graeme McMillan — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 06:30:00 PDT

The craze for turning toys into movies may have reached some strange new peak, with the news that Universal plans to turn Major Matt Mason into a movie starring Tom Hanks.

Mason, a Mattel toyline that ran from 1966 through to the early '70s, was based around an astronaut and his crew on a moonbase, although later releases introduced aliens into the previously-scientifically-sound line (The original figures were based on information found in magazines like Air Force and Life). Apparently Hanks was a fan; according to Variety, he brought his own Matt Mason doll to an early meeting about the project.

The movie will be produced by Hanks' production company Playtone, with Speed screenwriter Graham Yost writing. No word yet on whether to expect a Barbie cameo after the credits.

Tom Hanks circles 'Major' toy story [Variety]

Tom Hanks Welcomes You To The City Of Ember

Meredith Woerner — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 08:00:00 PDT

Producer of The City of Ember Tom Hanks gives us all an inside peek into the underground city that was filmed where the Titanic (not James Cameron's movie, the actual ship) was built. Almost the entire underground world was constructed on this gigantic set, including Ember's shops, salons and mysterious tunnels.

Fahrenheit 451 Is "The Most Relevant Piece Of Literature Ever Written"

Kevin Kelly — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 12:59:03 PST

Director Frank Darabont has made a career out of adapting kooky and off-beat novel and short stories, most of them from the hand of Stephen King. He impressively turned the very thin story "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" into a film that holds his own, and now he's attempting to do the same with Ray Bradbury's classic Fahrenheit 451.

He claims that George Bush and the day and age of the Patriot Act have made this novel more important today than the day it was published, more than 50 years ago, and he's going to set it "50 years from today — whenever today is." Which means it could be 1950, 2000, or 2050. As long as he doesn't turn it into some sort of futuristic utopia in trouble, a la Minority Report or AI, we're all for it.

Of course that means we'll have to forgive leading man Tom Hanks for The DaVinci Code. We're fairly open minded, but that haircut ... ouch.

'Fahrenheit 451' Director Insists Book Is 'More Relevant Today,' Hopes To Shoot Adaptation In 2008 [MTV]