At this point in his career, Tom Hanks commands an impressive salary per film. Yet the actor isn't full of himself, either. He's been known to take on lower-paying projects, contribute his own money to production, and even volunteer to appear in pop stars' music videos.
Tom doesn't take on every project that pays, either, and reportedly turned down When Harry Met Sally for personal reasons. Most of the time, Tom Hanks' instincts seem spot on when it comes to which projects will be successful and, in some cases, earn him the most cash after the fact. It may have started with Forrest Gump, but Tom Hanks' net worth has been on an upward trend ever since.
How Much Did Tom Hanks Get Paid For Forrest Gump?
These days, Tom Hanks may be better known for voicing Woody in multiple iterations of Toy Story, but his first claim to fame was his role in Forrest Gump. The film hasn't necessarily aged well, but the 1994 classic put Tom on Hollywood's map.
Though the Forrest Gump sequel was a complete failure and never came to fruition, it didn't slow Tom down any. Another of his big films, Saving Private Ryan, came in 1998. Then there was Cast Away in 2000, and from there, Tom was absolutely cemented as an industry favorite.
Given that it was quite early in his career, fans might assume Tom didn't get paid much for Forrest Gump. Though he had been acting since about 1980, his more notable work didn't start until the '90s.
But it turns out Tom was already well on his way up the salary ladder; earlier projects like Big earned Hanks a payday of $1.75 million in 1988. Another 1998 film, Punchline, paid Tom $5 million.
Plus, by the time Forrest Gump came around, Tom knew some industry secrets—like the fact that he could bank on a cut of the profits if his projects did well.
Hanks reportedly included a clause in his contract that gave him performance-based pay, meaning that a box office hit would get him more money than he would have been paid as a salary.
Thanks to the contract, Tom Hanks reportedly made $40 million from Forrest Gump, according to LADBible.
However, he did invest some of his own money before getting the payout. Tom and the director, Robert Zemeckis, apparently spent from their own pockets to keep certain scenes in the film.
There's also some confusion over exactly how much Tom made and when; Celebrity Net Worth states that Tom wound up making $70 million from Forrest Gump—in the first year. It's unclear whether Tom would get a yearly payout, in something of a royalty setup, or if that was his only payment from the movie.
Tom Hanks Is Worth $400 Million
Thanks to his smart business dealings and on-point acting skills, Tom Hanks made easy work of amassing a $400 million net worth. Not every film has been a major payout for the actor, but even in the '80s, he was making at least tens of thousands per movie, and it quickly accelerated from there.
Sometimes, Tom seemed to take lower-paying gigs in the hopes that they would pay off later. For example, for the first Toy Story film in 1995, Hanks apparently accepted a salary of only $50,000 for his voiceover work.
By the second movie, the commitment began to pay off; Tom reportedly earned $5 million for Toy Story 2 and $15 million for Toy Story 3. It's not clear how much the actor was paid for the fourth film, but many speculate that his payout was closer to $30 million given the popularity of the franchise—and Tom's esteem as an actor.
Hanks didn't stop at acting though; he's produced countless films over the years, too, earning more income without being in front of the camera.
How Much Did Tom Hanks Make From Elvis?
Though Tom Hanks can easily command a salary of $25 million per film (which Celebrity Net Worth claims is now his minimum), he still takes on lower-paying projects on occasion. The appeal of the story behind the film may have gotten to Tom in recent years, especially with Elvis in 2022.
Tom Hanks was paid $8 million for portraying Colonel Tom Parker in the film, according to Celebrity Net Worth. That is something of a pay cut for the actor, considering he made over $18 million for his first The Da Vinci Code film, and $25 million for each sequel.
The film was a major breakthrough for Austin Butler as Elvis, and he was also said to have won Tom over easily enough during filming. Tom's wasn't exactly a loveable character, but he was a crucial part of telling Elvis' story.
Since Tom clearly didn't need the money, odds are, he took on the project for creative fulfillment, something he's entirely free to do since his net worth is astronomically high. Tom doesn't seem to be slowing down, however.
He appeared in two other films in 2022, apart from Elvis, including the live-action Pinocchio, and released one film early in 2023.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTErZ%2Bippeoe6S7zGirqKVdna6vt9JmpZ6sXay8s8DHaA%3D%3D