I just heard Streets of Philadelphia on radio, which made me think of movies where Tom Hanks is in a leading role. I could not think of one I’ve seen where he was not convincing in the role.
I think he is one of the very best actors we’ve seen. Disagree?
Yeah, but I feel like a lot of it is because of the roles he chooses and the career he cultivates. Hanks can play bigger roles, but you can tell he picked more restrained roles after making the transition from comedy to drama.
I also feel like he never had a legitimate down time in his career which would require him to play against type to bring in audiences. A lot of great performances come from actors making their comeback, something that Tom Hanks never needed to do.
IMO: Brand Tom Hanks was established with Big (1988!) and solidified with A League of Their Own (1993). From then on, he’s basically a hit factory.
The biggest departure for him, that I saw, was the Road to Perdition (2002). Not exactly off-brand, but a risk. It was excellent.