Tom Hanks Calls Movie Press Junkets 'Merciless': 'You Lose It After a While' (Video)

Tom Hanks has called movie press junkets “merciless” and says they are on a level of “corporate branding strategy to the degree of hackery.”

“A press junket for a motion picture is the most opprobrious thing that human beings have ever been put through. It is merciless,” Hanks said during a TimesTalks Q&A on Tuesday. “It is a level of corporate branding strategy to the degree of hackery and they honestly think you have the stamina of an ox to drag this piece of s– movie across international datelines.”

He continued, “It goes on forever until truly you cannot fathom words that are coming out of your mouth.”

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The 61-year-old actor remembered a time when he woke up in a hotel room while promoting a film.

He called out for his wife, Rita Wilson, but soon realized he “hadn’t been with her in a week and a half.”

“All I knew is that hair and makeup was coming at 8:15,” he said. “I had no idea which city I was in. You lose it after a while.”

Also Read: Tom Hanks' 'Money Pit' Mansion Gets Renovated, on Sale for $5.9 Million

Hanks hammered down on the subject, adding, “When you see a movie star talking about their film, understand they hate themselves. The motion picture they made is a blur in the background. Even when they see it, they don’t remember any of it.”

Hanks will next stars as Watergate-era Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee in Steven Spielberg’s “The Post,” due in theaters December 22.

Watch the video below.

The Evolution of Tom Hanks' Hair: From 'Bosom Buddies' to 'Da Vinci Code'

Tom Hanks' wavy mullet was something of an obsession for the actor as he embarked on the first installment in the "Da Vinci Code" series. In honor of the film's 10-year anniversary, take a look back at the Oscar winner's coif chronology.
Columbia Pictures
When Hanks wasn't showing off his real brown locks on the early 1980s sitcom "Bosom Buddies," he donned a woman's wig during his cross-dressing scenes with co-star Peter Scolari. (The ABC show revolved around two bachelors who dress as women in order to secure an affordable apartment.)
ABC/Paramount Television
Hanks' hair is his thing, dating back to his breakout film role in the hit 1984 romantic comedy "Splash." Just look at how Daryl Hannah (who played the mermaid Madison) is combing her fingers through it!
Disney
Apparently studio execs were banking on Hanks' curly mop: This publicity photo for the raunchy 1984 comedy "Bachelor Party" has another woman running her fingers through his locks.
20th Century Fox
Hanks' hair seemed to reach peak condition in the hit 1988 Penny Marshall comedy "Big."
20th Century Fox
Hanks' hair was slicked back in some scenes for the 1990 dramatic comedy "The Bonfire of the Vanities."
Warner Bros.
Hanks played a lawyer afflicted with HIV-AIDS in the 1993 drama "Philadelphia," for which he won his first Academy Award. And yes, his hair reflected such as he depicted various stages of his character's illness in the film.
TriStar Pictures
Hanks wore his hair closely cropped during most of 1994's "Forrest Gump," which won six Oscars, including the actor's second win in the Best Actor category.
Paramount Pictures
But he also wore a long-haired look, complete with impenetrable beard, during the the film's famous running sequence set in the 1970s.
Paramount Pictures
Who can forget Hanks' blonde permed look in the 2000 drama "Castaway" (in which he re-teamed with Zemeckis)?
20th Century Fox
His hair was styled quite fancifully in the 2004 Coen Brothers comedy "The Ladykillers."
Disney
To achieve the perfect coiffure for "The Da Vinci Code," Hanks thought really hard about it: "[I wanted it] fuller in the back and falling down across my forehead," he shared in a 2006 interview. "But the truth is my hair cannot be long and flowing -- genetically, it doesn't do that. It's a bush... We talked about a wig, but that ends up taking a huge amount of time. So I went to these guys who know about hair chemistry and found a way." Science.
Columbia Pictures
And the winner for most styles worn by Hanks in a single movie goes to: 2012's "Cloud Atlas."
Warner Bros.
When Hanks reprised his "Da Vinci" role as Robert Langdon for a third time in "Inferno" (in theaters Oct. 28), he ditched the party in the back, opting for a smoothed-out, shorter version. Good choice.
Columbia Pictures

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Celebrate the 10th anniversary of ”The Da Vinci Code“ with a stroll down memory mane

Tom Hanks' wavy mullet was something of an obsession for the actor as he embarked on the first installment in the "Da Vinci Code" series. In honor of the film's 10-year anniversary, take a look back at the Oscar winner's coif chronology.

View In Gallery

The Evolution of Tom Hanks' Hair: From 'Bosom Buddies' to 'Da Vinci Code'

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