How Tom Hanks Played off a ‘You’ve Got Mail’ Mistake
Tom Hanks is an actor who can make audiences laugh one minute and cry the next. It comes as no surprise that the actor has won multiple awards. In fact, he managed to star in hit after hit for 10 straight years.
Hanks delivers quality comedy on the big screen. Some of his best moments come from the top of his head. His line about fish in You’ve Got Mail was a response to a mistake.
Tom Hanks played Joe in ‘You’ve Got Mail’
You’ve Got Mail is a 1998 movie that featured Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan as the lead characters. In the story, Kathleen and Joe have been regularly emailing each other. They do not know each other’s actual names and meet in real life without knowing it.
A play inspired the movie’s creation, but it is not what some people would expect. The play is a 1930s production from Hungary that focuses on two employees who are pen pals unknowingly. There are considerable differences between the play and movie, but people have enjoyed both works.
The romantic comedy was successful, and people have learned interesting facts about the film. Ryan worked at a real bookstore in New York to prepare for her role as a bookshop owner. She gained experience as a cashier and learned her way around a shop.
Another tidbit includes the timestamp of when Joe and Kathleen meet at the park. The meeting occurs at an hour and 52 minutes which matches Joe’s username, NY152. The clever timing shows the care the director put into the film.
Hanks reacted to a mistake in a hilarious way
In some cases, actors use the first thought that comes to their minds to improvise. Others might react to mistakes that occur while filming. In You’ve Got Mail, the director kept in an unscripted line from Hanks following a mishap.
Joe is in the bookstore with his young family members, and he is carrying balloons and a goldfish. According to a MsMojo video, the balloons were not supposed to get stuck in the door as he exited. Hanks opens the door to free them and says, “Good thing it wasn’t the fish.”
The next shot is of his co-stars laughing in response to the delivery of his statement. Of course, the director knew it was comedy gold and allowed the take in the final cut. Viewers found the line quite funny as well.
The scene became one of the most memorable parts of the movie. It shows how well Hanks can stay in character when the unexpected happens.
Other times Hanks improvised in a scene
Hanks can give great dramatic performances, and he knows when to be hilarious. You’ve Got Mail is not the only film where he improvised a scene.
The movie Big features the actor as an adult version of a kid who turns 30 overnight. At one point, Hanks’ character enters the room of an office party. His line “Everyone’s staring at me. Is my fly open?” was not in the original script.
Another authentic moment of his happens in Forrest Gump when Jenny says no to his character’s proposal. After the rejection, Hanks decided to walk onto the porch and place his hands on his hips. The actor knew his role well enough to do a pose that seemed in character.
Finally, the entire final sequence of Captain Phillips was “100% exact, authentic,” Hanks explained at a screening of the film (via the LA Times). The scene took place in an infirmary, which the actor stated came from the actual experiences the movie was based on. The “experiment,” according to Hanks, “ended up just being lightning in a bottle.”
