Career Timeline of Tom Hanks: Major Achievements and Milestones
From career breakthroughs to professional milestones, explore how Tom Hanks made an impact.
Tom Hanks is a highly acclaimed and globally recognized American actor and filmmaker, celebrated for his versatility in both comedic and dramatic roles. A cultural icon and one of the highest-grossing American film actors, he boasts an impressive array of awards, including two Academy Awards, seven Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. He has also received the AFI Life Achievement Award, the Kennedy Center Honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Cecil B. DeMille Award, solidifying his significant contributions to the film industry.
1981: Meeting Rita Wilson on Bosom Buddies set
In 1981, Tom Hanks met actress Rita Wilson on the set of the TV comedy Bosom Buddies.
1985: Reunion with Rita Wilson on Volunteers set
In 1985, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson were reunited on the set of the movie Volunteers.
1993: Best Actor Academy Award for Philadelphia
In 1993, Tom Hanks won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in the movie Philadelphia.
1994: Best Actor Academy Award for Forrest Gump
In 1994, Tom Hanks won his second consecutive Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the film Forrest Gump.
1998: Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for From the Earth to the Moon
In 1998, Tom Hanks received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for his work as a producer on the limited series From the Earth to the Moon.
1998: Saving Private Ryan Release and You've Got Mail
In 1998, Tom Hanks starred in Steven Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan", a war film set in France after D-Day. The film received critical acclaim and earned Spielberg an Academy Award for directing and Hanks a Best Actor nomination. Hanks also starred in "You've Got Mail" with Meg Ryan that year.
1999: Releases of The Green Mile and Toy Story 2
In 1999, Tom Hanks starred in "The Green Mile", based on the Stephen King novel. He also reprised his role as Woody in "Toy Story 2" that year.
2000: Cast Away release
In 2000, Tom Hanks starred in "Cast Away", directed by Robert Zemeckis, where he played a FedEx systems analyst marooned on an island.
2001: Band of Brothers release and 9/11 Tribute
In 2001, Tom Hanks co-directed and produced the HBO miniseries "Band of Brothers", which won an Emmy Award. He also appeared in the "America: A Tribute to Heroes" television special following the September 11 attacks.
2002: Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for Band of Brothers
In 2002, Tom Hanks received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for his work as a producer on the limited series Band of Brothers.
2004: Donation of Espresso Machine to White House Press Corps
In 2004, Tom Hanks donated an espresso machine to the White House press corps after learning they did not have a coffee pot.
2004: Appears in Three Films
In 2004, Tom Hanks starred in three films: "The Ladykillers", "The Terminal", and "The Polar Express", in which he played multiple motion capture roles.
August 2005: Elected Vice President of the Academy
In August 2005, Tom Hanks was elected as vice president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
June 2006: Induction into United States Army Rangers Hall of Fame
In June 2006, Tom Hanks was inducted as an honorary member of the United States Army Rangers Hall of Fame for his accurate portrayal of a captain in the movie Saving Private Ryan.
2006: Stars in The Da Vinci Code and tops Forbes list
In 2006, Tom Hanks starred in "The Da Vinci Code", which grossed over US$750 million worldwide. In the same year, he topped Forbes magazine's list of "most trusted celebrities".
2006: Douglas S. Morrow Public Outreach Award
In 2006, the Space Foundation awarded Tom Hanks the Douglas S. Morrow Public Outreach Award for his significant contributions to public awareness of space programs.
April 11, 2007: Announcement of Angels & Demons and Saturday Night Live
On April 11, 2007, it was announced that Tom Hanks would reprise his role as Robert Langdon in "Angels & Demons". The following day, he made his 10th appearance on NBC's "Saturday Night Live".
2007: The War, The Simpsons Movie and Charlie Wilson's War
In 2007, Tom Hanks did voice work for Ken Burns's documentary "The War". He voiced himself in "The Simpsons Movie" and starred in "Charlie Wilson's War".
March 10, 2008: Induction of The Dave Clark Five into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
On March 10, 2008, Tom Hanks inducted The Dave Clark Five into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
2008: Endorsement of Barack Obama
During the 2008 United States presidential election, Tom Hanks uploaded a video to his MySpace account endorsing Barack Obama.
2008: The Great Buck Howard, Mamma Mia! and John Adams
In 2008, Tom Hanks appeared in "The Great Buck Howard" and executive produced "Mamma Mia!" and the miniseries "John Adams".
2008: Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for John Adams
In 2008, Tom Hanks received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for his work as a producer on the limited series John Adams.
2008: Opposition to Proposition 8
In 2008, Tom Hanks was outspoken about his opposition to Proposition 8, an amendment to the California constitution that defined marriage as a union only between a man and a woman, and helped raise over US$44 million to campaign against it.
2009: Releases of Angels & Demons and Where The Wild Things Are
In 2009, Tom Hanks starred in "Angels & Demons" reprising his role as Robert Langdon and produced "Where The Wild Things Are", based on Maurice Sendak's children's book.
2010: Donation of New Espresso Machines to White House Press Corps
In 2010, Tom Hanks donated new espresso machines to the White House press corps.
2010: Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for The Pacific
In 2010, Tom Hanks received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for his work as a producer on the limited series The Pacific.
2010: Toy Story 3 and The Pacific
In 2010, Tom Hanks reprised his role as Woody in "Toy Story 3", which became the highest-grossing animated film at the time. He also executive produced the miniseries "The Pacific" that year.
2011: Larry Crowne and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
In 2011, Tom Hanks directed and starred in "Larry Crowne" alongside Julia Roberts, which received mixed reviews. He also starred in the drama "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close".
2011: Narration of Killing Lincoln
In 2011, Tom Hanks narrated the television program Killing Lincoln.
2012: Narration of The Road We've Traveled
In 2012, Tom Hanks narrated The Road We've Traveled, a documentary created by Obama for America.
2012: Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for Game Change
In 2012, Tom Hanks received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for his work as a producer on the television film Game Change.
2012: Electric City, Cloud Atlas, and Game Change
In 2012, Tom Hanks voiced Cleveland Carr for the web series he created, "Electric City". He played multiple parts in "Cloud Atlas", and was executive producer of the miniseries "Game Change".
2012: Cloud Atlas movie released
In 2012, Tom Hanks was directed by Tom Tykwer in the movie "Cloud Atlas".
January 2013: Masters of the Air Development Announced
In January 2013, HBO confirmed the development of "Masters of the Air", a World War II miniseries with Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, following "Band of Brothers" and "The Pacific".
2013: Tony Award nomination for Lucky Guy
In 2013, Tom Hanks received a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Play for his performance in Nora Ephron's play Lucky Guy.
2013: Captain Phillips, Saving Mr. Banks and Broadway Debut
In 2013, Tom Hanks starred in "Captain Phillips" and "Saving Mr. Banks", earning critical acclaim. He also made his Broadway debut in "Lucky Guy", for which he was nominated for a Tony Award.
2013: Starring in Lucky Guy on Broadway and Fan Following
In 2013, while Tom Hanks was starring in Nora Ephron's play Lucky Guy on Broadway, he had an exceptionally large crowd of around 300 fans waiting to see him after each performance.
August 2014: Release of Hanx Writer iOS App
In August 2014, Tom Hanks released Hanx Writer, an iOS app meant to emulate the experience of using a typewriter.
2014: Alan Bean Plus Four published in The New Yorker
In 2014, Tom Hanks' short story "Alan Bean Plus Four" was published in The New Yorker. The story revolves around four friends who take a voyage to the moon.
March 2015: Appears in Carly Rae Jepsen's I Really Like You music video
In March 2015, Tom Hanks appeared in the music video for Carly Rae Jepsen's "I Really Like You", lip-syncing the song's lyrics.
2015: Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for Olive Kitteridge
In 2015, Tom Hanks received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination and win for his work as a producer on the limited series Olive Kitteridge.
April 2016: Stars in A Hologram for the King
In April 2016, Tom Hanks starred in the comedy-drama "A Hologram for the King", based on the 2012 novel of the same name.
2016: Endorsement of Hillary Clinton
In 2016, Tom Hanks endorsed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election.
2016: Sully and Inferno Releases
In 2016, Tom Hanks starred as Chesley Sullenberger in "Sully" and reprised his role as Robert Langdon in "Inferno".
March 2017: Masters of the Air Production Progress
In March 2017, NME reported that production was progressing on the World War II miniseries "Masters of the Air" under the working title "The Mighty Eighth", with Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg involved.
October 28, 2017: The David S. Pumpkins Halloween Special
On October 28, 2017, Tom Hanks voiced David S. Pumpkins in "The David S. Pumpkins Halloween Special" on NBC.
2017: Third Donation of Espresso Machine to White House Press Corps
In 2017, Tom Hanks donated another espresso machine to the White House Press Corps with a note encouraging them to "Keep up the good fight for Truth, Justice, and the American Way".
2017: Publication of Uncommon Type
In 2017, Tom Hanks' collection of short stories inspired by his typewriter collection, Uncommon Type, was published.
July 2018: Advocacy After Mati Wildfire
In July 2018, Tom Hanks and his family were conferred honorary citizenship for their role in bringing global attention and appealing for aid after a devastating wildfire that ripped through the seaside village of Mati, near Athens.
October 11, 2019: Masters of the Air to Stream on Apple TV+
On October 11, 2019, it was announced that "Masters of the Air" would stream on Apple TV+ due to budget constraints at HBO. The series was expected to cost $200 million.
December 27, 2019: Honorary Greek Citizenship Granted
On December 27, 2019, Tom Hanks and his family were granted honorary citizenship by the President of Greece for their exceptional services to Greece.
2019: Toy Story 4 and A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
In 2019, Tom Hanks reprised his role as Sheriff Woody in "Toy Story 4" and portrayed Fred Rogers in "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood", for which he received his first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
April 11, 2020: Hosts Saturday Night Live After COVID-19 Diagnosis
On April 11, 2020, Tom Hanks hosted Saturday Night Live, marking his first television appearance since his COVID-19 diagnosis. It was a unique episode featuring remotely filmed sketches from cast members' homes.
June 2020: Greyhound Initial Release Date
In June 2020, "Greyhound", starring and written by Tom Hanks, was initially set for theatrical release by Sony Pictures.
July 2020: Greyhound Release on Apple TV+
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in July 2020, the distribution rights for "Greyhound", starring and written by Tom Hanks, were bought by Apple TV+ and released on the streaming service.
December 2020: Confirmed for Pinocchio
In December 2020, Tom Hanks was officially confirmed to portray Geppetto in Walt Disney Studios' live-action adaptation of "Pinocchio".
2020: Endorsement of Joe Biden
In 2020, Tom Hanks endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.
2021: Stars in Finch
In 2021, Tom Hanks starred in the science fiction drama "Finch", which was directed by Miguel Sapochnik and released by Apple TV+.
March 2, 2022: Interview on Dead Eyes Podcast
On March 2, 2022, Tom Hanks was interviewed on Connor Ratliff's podcast "Dead Eyes", where they discussed Ratliff's firing from "Band of Brothers" due to Hanks' alleged belief that Ratliff had "dead eyes".
June 2022: Elvis Release
In June 2022, Tom Hanks starred as Tom Parker in Baz Luhrmann's "Elvis".
September 8, 2022: Pinocchio Release on Disney+
On September 8, 2022, Tom Hanks starred as Geppetto in Walt Disney Studios' live-action adaptation of "Pinocchio", released on Disney+.
2022: Son Truman portrays younger version of Hanks' character in A Man Called Otto
In 2022, Truman Hanks portrayed the younger version of his father Tom Hanks' character in the film A Man Called Otto.
May 2023: Publication of The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece
In May 2023, Tom Hanks' debut novel, The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, was published.
June 2023: Asteroid City Premiere
In June 2023, Tom Hanks appeared in Wes Anderson's "Asteroid City", which premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival and was subsequently released.
2023: Founded Hanx for the Troops Coffee Company
In 2023, Tom Hanks founded Hanx for the Troops, a coffee company that supports veterans and military families through a portion of its profits and various initiatives.
January 26, 2024: Masters of the Air Series Premiere
On January 26, 2024, the miniseries "Masters of the Air" premiered.
October 2024: Here movie release
In October 2024, "Here", a feature adaptation of Richard McGuire's graphic novel, was released, reuniting Tom Hanks with Robin Wright and Robert Zemeckis.
Mentioned in this timeline
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