Tom Hanks Writes First Novel Inspired by ‘Important Lessons’ from His Hollywood Experiences

The double cross Oscar winner composed his most memorable novel, The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, out May 9, 2023, about the film business and the making of a “colossal, star-studded, multimillion-dollar superhero action film and the unassuming comic book that inspired it,” per an official synopsis.

Hanks, 66, lets Individuals know that the plot draws from his personal Hollywood encounters.

“Each character in the book accomplishes something I’ve encountered while making a film, as well as discovered a way of thinking or learned an important lesson. Indeed, even the foolish minutes are some sort of trick I’ve pulled or mistake I’ve made due,” he says.

The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece spans several decades and showcases American culture has changed since The Second Great War. One portion is set in 1947, about a soldier returning home from war who leaves a lasting impression on his talented 5-year-old nephew. That kid grows up to draw comic books in 1970, making his uncle into one of his characters.

Then, in present day, a chief chooses to adapt that comic book into a big-spending plan superhero film. The book’s characters include an “very troublesome” male actor and a “wonderful” leading lady actress, in addition to an “unconventional” chief, maker, production assistant and more idiosyncratic team individuals.

Interspersed all through the novel are funny books composed by Hanks and illustrated by Robert Sikoryak.

“The hotspot for a film can return as many years as are in history. A story turns on a single second in the existence of someone, then all the anecdotes of the ongoing day magnify that second,” explains Hanks. “Going back to 1947 makes sense, as would have starting in, say, 1559. Human yearning has shown to be ageless.”

“Nobody knows how a film is made — however everyone thinks they do,” he adds. “I’ve made a ton of motion pictures (and four of them are very great, I think) and I’m actually amazed at how movies meet up. From a glint of an idea to the flickering image onscreen, the entire process is a miracle.”

Hanks, who also composed the bestselling 2017 collection of brief tales Uncommon Sort, says, “Film making is exceptionally hard work over an extremely long timeframe that consists of such countless snapshots of bliss slapped facing an equal number of feelings of self-hatred. It is the greatest occupation on the planet and the most confounding of labors that I am aware of.

I trust the book captures as a large part of ‘the accidental decisions and casual slaughter’ that go into a motion pictures proclamation to hold ‘a mirror up to nature’ that I have seen (and caused) since I joined the Screen Actors Organization.”

“I never read a page of any school history book about how, in 1921, a mob of white people burned down a place called Black Wall Street, killed as many as 300 of its Black citizens and displaced thousands of Black Americans,” writes @TomHanks. https://t.co/TJGkrTHOSL pic.twitter.com/GB4OX08yzf

— New York Times Opinion (@nytopinion) June 4, 2021

The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, from Knopf Publishing Gathering, is out May 9, 2023.