Hanks As Geppetto? No Strings On Tom – Yet!
Disney Fans Wish To See Tom Hanks Appear In Pinnochio
Yesterday, I saw our friend Skyler Schuler post on a rumor that hit the interwebs last year – Tom Hanks playing Geppetto in a live-action remake.
© Mario Anzuoni/Reuters
This made me happy:
Tom Hanks is back in early talks for the role. Hanks reportedly reached out to new director Robert Zemeckis who signed on the project last fall, and let him know he wants to do the film. Disney has always longed for Hanks to play the woodcarver.
True to form, Schuler pointed to Deadline’s Justin Kroll, who had the original report, which explained:
Disney has always longed for Hanks to play the woodcarver, having approached him years ago when Paul King was attached to direct. That deal was never made, but given Hanks and Zemeckis’ long-standing relationship going back to when they both won Oscars for their work on Forrest Gump, this seems more likely to move forward.
Zemeckis will direct the film with Andrew Miano and Chris Weitz producing through their company Depth of Field, with Weitz and Zemeckis penning the script.
Proven Track Records For Pinnochio?
Most recently, Hanks appeared in Greyhound, which I can unabashedly recommend:
Saw @GreyhoundMovies, finally. Amazing tribute to the sailors who protect us every day. @tomhanks pulled off yet another movie I will show my children when they are old enough to grasp, if not understand, what they watch. #Greyhound @AppleTV @SonyPictures https://t.co/qpnySeYGc0
— Obish-Wan (@jmbishopjr) August 6, 2020
And of course, Zemekis is, well,
Image: IMDB.com
Looking Ahead – Hanks & Zemekis
Of the Pinnochio film, TheDisInsider added:
The film is expected to have a budget of over $150 million, Disney’s live-action remakes of Beauty and the Beast and The Jungle Book had similar budgets, so expect the House of Mouse to put Pinocchio on a grand scale visually.
And, of the “Magic of Disney,” Hanks is on record saying of Disney’s part in his childhood:
Well at the time that it really mattered, it was [the Sunday night television show] Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color. And we did not have a color television set until much later than everybody else did, and so I remember where I was. My parents [took] me to some friends of theirs, and… at my disposal, on a Sunday night, a color television, and saw for the first time Tinkerbell come out and go “dink, dink, dink” with those fireworks. And it was blue and red — I thought it was magical. I could not believe.
And then what kicked in? A song by Richard and Robert Sherman: [sings] “The world is a carousel of color, wonderful, wonderful color.” And so it was a staple of Sunday nights. It was magical to sit and watch Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color.
Back To The Future?
To me, that speaks to a man who understands the importance of the Disney classics. And that, along with Hanks’ previous work with Zemekis and The Walt Disney Company, makes this observer optimistic for another Hanks’ appearance at the Walt Disney Studios.
Deadline added, “The film marks the fourth collaboration between Hanks and Zemeckis after Forrest Gump, Cast Away and the Christmas classic The Polar Express.”
Sounds pretty certain, no?
