Over his long and illustrious career as an actor,Tom Hankshas earned a reputation as one of Hollywood’s nicest people. This was enforced by his choice of roles inprojects such as rom-comSleepless in Seattle,You’ve Got Mail, andForrest Gump, andThe Polar Express. Recently, he shook things up by starring inA Man Called Ottoas an extremely grumpy man. But there was a time not so long ago when Hanks' career was largely made up of redemption stories for grouchy characters not unlike Otto, out of which his ultimate nice-guy persona was forged. During the height of this period, Tom Hanks was even offered and turned down one of cinema’s most iconic examples of grouchy characters: Phil Connors in 1993’sGroundhog Day.
Why Did Tom Hanks Turn Down ‘Groundhog Day’?
Groundhog Daywent on to starBill Murrayas pessimistic weatherman Phil Connors and was directed by Murray’s fellow GhostbusterHarold Ramis. It follows Connors as he begrudgingly visits Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to report on its annual Groundhog Day celebration, only to wake up every day forced to relive Groundhog Day over and over again until he learns to become a better man. The movie also starsAndie MacDowellas Connors' love interest Rita, whose love must truly be earned by Connors to fully prove his redemption. This veers the movie somewhat into the rom-com genre, meaning it wouldn’t have been an enormousdeviation from Tom Hanks' careerat the time, had he accepted the role.
Although modern audiences are used to a more honorable brand of Hanks character by now, the actor was known for playing more agitated performances at the time, in films such asTurner & Hooch,A League of Their Own, and the then-upcomingToy Story. By the end of each movie, his characters reveal themselves to have hearts of gold beneath all the agitation, and so, to avoid his own baggage as an actor from ruining the mystery ofGroundhog Day’s redemption story, Hanks didn’t want to accept the role of Connors.
During a 2009 Q&A, Ramis revealed that his original casting choice for Connors was in fact Tom Hanks, but that Hanks later told him, “Audiences would have been sitting there waiting for me to become nice, because I always play nice. But Bill [Murray]’s such a miserable S.O.B. on- and offscreen, you didn’t know what was going to happen.” In short, although Hanks had proven himself capable of playing characters like Connors in the past, his developing persona as Hollywood’s nice guy prevented him from accepting the role inGroundhog Dayin good conscience. That’s not to say that Hanks is happy about his nice-guy persona however, havingattempted to set the record straightby saying, “I don’t like people taking advantage of my good nature."
Bill Murray Hated Working on ‘Groundhog Day’
Famously, Bill Murray hated working onGroundhog Daydespite its commercial and critical success. Despite collaborating with his friend Harold Ramis (again), working on this movie drove such a wedge between the two that theydidn’t speak to each other for twenty years. Murray was in the thick of his divorce fromMargaret Kelleyat the time, with whom he had two children.According to Uproxx, Murray’s personal life directly led to a tense atmosphere on set, in which his demeanor was increasingly erratic. “He would show up late to work, throw tantrums, and generally disagree with many of Ramis’ choices.” Maybe that’s why his performance as the “miserable S.O.B.” was so convincing!
Even after the film’s completion, Murray was not a fan of the project, but asReader’s Digestpoetically summarized, “It stands to reason that the movie could be a reminder of a difficult period in his life, which is pretty ironic considering his character Phil has to endure experiencing the same horrible day over and over again onGroundhog Day.” Ramis later reflected on Murray’s party-animal persona, stating “He just didn’t want to do it anymore, and started exploring this more adult, serious side of himself.” Even with the full context of Tom Hanks' various career stages and character types, some might find it surprising that Ramis found Hanks and Bill Murray so interchangeable. Murray has by now made the character of Phil Connors so iconic in his own right that it would be difficult to imagine anyone else in the role. The same can be said for many Tom Hanks projects as well. Could you imagine anyone else as Forrest Gump orspending time with Wilson inCast Away?
Murray, instead, became a frequent collaborator for a new generation of auteurs includingSofia CoppolaandWes Anderson, a move Ramis applauded. “The most self-revealing thing I ever saw was never in the press or publicity, it was inLost in TranslationorRushmore.” More recently, the link between the two actors came to light again in the run-up to Wes Anderson’s 2023 filmAsteroid City.As Wes Anderson’s most reliable collaborator, Bill Murray was forced to opt out of his role inAsteroid Cityafter a Covid-19 diagnosis. This marked the first Anderson movie in which Murray does not appear, since they first collaborated on 1998’sRushmore. Wes Anderson is known for his roster of frequent collaborators (Edward Norton,Anjelica Houston,Owen Wilson,Willem Dafoe) but one new actor to enter Anderson’s roster inAsteroid Cityhowever was Tom Hanks. Although Hanks' role was always his own, and the Murray role ended up going toSteve Carell, it marks a notable moment inTom Hanks and Bill Murray’s intertwining careers.
