Tom Hanks As Walt Disney? Oscar Winner May Star In ‘Saving Mr. Banks’ With Emma Thompson
The Huffington Post
Tom Hanks has had great success for Walt Disney Studios — his vocal work helped the “Toy Story” franchise earn almost $2 billion around the globe — but will his magic touch extend to actually playing Disney himself? That’s the hope for the studio, which — according to Deadline.com — is eyeing Hanks to star as Disney in “Saving Mr. Banks,” a true-life story that follows the mogul’s attempts to bring “Mary Poppins” to the big screen.
Emma Thompson in is talks to play P.L. Travers, the Australian author behind “Poppins,” who fought Disney at every turn over the course of 14 years while he attempted to option her novel. John Lee Hancock, who helmed “The Blind Side,” is set to direct.
Little else is known about the project beyond the real-life outcome: “Poppins” became a classic for Disney and turned Julie Andrews into a star. She won an Oscar for playing the titular role, while the film itself — directed by Robert Stevenson — won four others. “Mary Poppins” was also up for Best Picture. That was of little consequence to Travers, who was unhappy with the finished product, especially the animated sequences.
Hanks has been on the Walt Disney Studios shortlist to play its namesake since back in February when the project was first announced. For more on “Saving Mr. Banks,” including which three-time Oscar winner could have played Travers instead of Thompson, head over to Deadline.com.