Tom Hanks rips critics a new one as he defends his films and more news

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"Elvis" Photocall - The 75th Annual Cannes Film Festival
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Tom Hanks, the beloved actor, isnโ€™t pulling any punches when it comes to his movies.

The 68-year-old Oscar winner recently opened up on Conan Oโ€™Brienโ€˜s podcast, sharing his thoughts on how film reception has changed over time. He didnโ€™t mince words, using some colorful language to describe movie critics.

โ€œNow what happened is that time has become one of the metrics for how these things matter, right?โ€ Hanks explained. โ€œIn the day it was just a fist fight. It was every movie you came out, are you going to make the playoffs or not? Guess what? No, kid, youโ€™re 2 and 12 and you ainโ€™t going nowhere. Or, you got a shot.โ€

He went on to describe the different stages a movie goes through. โ€œIt used to be you had these Rubicons that you crossed,โ€ Hanks said. โ€œFirst of all, do you love it or not? Thatโ€™s the first thing. Yes, okay, you have crossed the Rubicon, right? The next Rubicon you cross is when the movie is completely done a year and a half later, and you see it for the first time, and you might like it. It doesnโ€™t matter if it works or not, you look at it and say, โ€˜Hey, I think we acquitted ourselves pretty good.โ€™ Thatโ€™s Rubicon No. 2.โ€

Hanks continued, โ€œThen the critics weigh in, thatโ€™s Rubicon No. 3, and thatโ€™s always up down. โ€˜We hate it, we like it. This is the worst thingโ€ฆ Oh hey, oh hi Tom, I saw you in a movie. It was cute.'โ€

He jokingly added, โ€œThatโ€™s when you ask the wife, โ€˜Hey, honey, could you take the revolver out of the glove box and hide it somewhere, because I thinkโ€ฆ,โ€

The Toy Story star pointed out that box office performance also plays a role in a filmโ€™s legacy. โ€œThen a ton of time goes by when none of that stuff matters anymore,โ€ he reflected. โ€œAnd the movie just exists exactly as it is outside of loser winner status. Thumbs up, thumbs down. And thatโ€™s when this stuff comes around, where itโ€™s like that this thing that didnโ€™t work back then, kind of does work now, or just the opposite, a thing that was huge back then is a museum piece and doesnโ€™t really speak to anything.โ€

When Oโ€™Brien, 61, mentioned Hanksโ€™ initial disappointment with his directorial debut That Thing You Do! (1996), which has since become a cult favorite, Hanks didnโ€™t hold back.

โ€œLet me tell you something about these cโ€“suckers who write about movies,โ€ Hanks responded, before asking Oโ€™Brien and his co-hosts, โ€œCan I say that?โ€

More on Conan Oโ€™Brien Needs a Friend podcast


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