You’d think talks about a sequel to a film that grossed $678 million worldwide would go along the lines of: “Yes, let’s definitely do that.”
But surprisingly, discussions about a potential follow-up to 1994’s Forrest Gump were shut down in 40 minutes flat.
Star Tom Hanks made the reveal in a new interview, admitting that although they ‘took a stab’ at a follow-up, things didn’t work out. Watch the film's trailer below:
Speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the Oscar-winning actor explained: “I will say that, with a long time in between, we did take a stab at talking about another Forrest Gump that lasted all of 40 minutes.
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"And then we never...we said, 'Guys, come on.'"
Hanks also addressed the fact that his career has been relatively sequel-free, sharing: “A smart thing I did is I’ve never signed a contract that had a contractual obligation to a sequel.
"I’ve always said, ‘Guys, if there’s a reason to do it, let’s do it. But you guys can’t force me.’ There is that natural inclination that is one of pure commerce that says, ‘Hey, you just had a hit, so do it again and you’ll have a hit.'”
Forrest Gump was based on Winston Groom’s 1986 novel of the same name.
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Following the film’s success, Groom penned a follow-up book in 1995 called Gump and Co, but alas, we never got to see that one come to life on the big screen.
In 2019, Forest Gump writer Eric Roth said a sequel to the hit film was planned, but then shelved in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Speaking to Yahoo Entertainment at the time, Roth said he’d finished a plan for a sequel on 10 September 2001 - just one day before the atrocious attacks.
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He explained: "We got together to commiserate how life was in America and how tragic it was.
"We looked at each other and said, 'this movie has no meaning anymore'. In that sense."
Going into more detail about what he’d submitted, Roth added: "It was going to start with his little boy having AIDS and people wouldn't go to class with him in Florida.
"We had this funny sequence where they were [desegregation] busing in Florida at the same time, so people were either angry about the busing or the kids having to go to school with the kid that had AIDS. So, there was a big conflict."
Featured Image Credit: Paramount PicturesTopics: TV and Film, Tom Hanks