Tom Hanks Played A Whole Other Character In ‘Forrest Gump’ — Do You Remember Who?

Tom Hanks played the titular character Forrest Gump in 1994’s Forrest Gump, but fans may have overlooked his other role as Nathan Bedford Forrest in the same film. Hanks’ delivery of both characters contributed to the movie’s acclaim, earning multiple awards including an Oscar for Best Actor in 1995.

Although the production received criticism for being different from Winston Groom’s 1986 novel of the same title, it still maintained a portrayal of events from the book. Some real-life characters from the account are also featured in the movie directed by Robert Zemeckis.

Tom Hanks’ other character in Forrest Gump

Hanks’ less-known character showed up in earlier scenes, particularly during the backstory about how Forrest got his name. The film star playing Nathan and Forrest was just as significant because they were related, though polar opposites in character.

Nathan— who could be seen wearing Ku Klux Klan gear, was a white supremacist, but Forrest was empathetic and very agreeable. Hanks appeared as Nathan for roughly 40 seconds, leaving viewers curious about the significance of the closing line, “Mamma said the Forrest part is to remind me sometimes we all do things that well just don’t make no sense.”

Nathan Bedford Forrest

Nathan was, in truth, a Confederate army general during the Civil War, who also served as the first Grand Wizard of the KKK, but briefly, as he began to disagree with their values. He even tried to dissolve the group and destroy their costumes, and he was bothered by the violence against black people.

After playing his most popular role alongside Nathan in Forrest Gump, which earned him his second Academy Award, he did more hit films such as Apollo 13 and voiced Toy Story’s Sheriff Woody. The 68-year-old has explored directing, Broadway, and TV over the years and is set to reprise his role as Woody in Toy Story 5 ahead of 2026.