View source for Forrest Gump

{{short description|1994 American film by Robert Zemeckis}}
{{About|the 1994 film|the novel the film is based on|Forrest Gump (novel){{!}}''Forrest Gump'' (novel)|other uses}}
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{{Use American English|date = March 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Forrest Gump
| image          = Forrest Gump poster.jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| alt            = Film poster with a white background and a park bench (facing away from the viewer) near the bottom. A man wearing a white suit is sitting on the right side of the bench and is looking to his left while resting his hands on both sides of him on the bench. A suitcase is sitting on the ground, and the man is wearing tennis shoes. At the top left of the image is the film's tagline and title and at the bottom is the release date and production credits.
| director       = [[Robert Zemeckis]]
| producer       = {{Plain list|
* [[Wendy Finerman]]
* [[Steve Tisch]]
* [[Steve Starkey]]
}}
| writer         = 
| screenplay     = [[Eric Roth]]
| based_on       = {{Based on|''[[Forrest Gump (novel)|Forrest Gump]]''|[[Winston Groom]]}}
| starring       = {{Plain list|
* [[Tom Hanks]]
* [[Robin Wright]]
* [[Gary Sinise]]
* [[Mykelti Williamson]]
* [[Sally Field]]
}}
| narrator       = <!-- In-character narrators are NOT to be included in infoboxes -->
| music          = [[Alan Silvestri]]
| cinematography = [[Don Burgess (cinematographer)|Don Burgess]]
| editing        = [[Arthur Schmidt (film editor)|Arthur Schmidt]]
| studio         = The Tisch Company<ref name=afi>{{cite web|url=https://catalog.afi.com/Film/55201-FORREST-GUMP|title=Forrest Gump (1994)|work=[[AFI Catalog of Feature Films]]|access-date=September 11, 2020|archive-date=June 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629191500/https://catalog.afi.com/Film/55201-FORREST-GUMP|url-status=live}}</ref>
| distributor    = [[Paramount Pictures]]<ref name=afi/>
| released       = {{Film date|1994|6|23|[[Los Angeles]]|1994|7|6|United States}}
| runtime        = 142 minutes
| country        = United States<ref name=afi/>
| language       = English
| budget         = $55{{nbsp}}million<ref name="BOXTotal">{{cite Box Office Mojo|id= 0109830 |title= Forrest Gump|access-date= December 9, 2021}}</ref>
| gross          = $678.2{{nbsp}}million<ref name="BOXTotal" />
}}
'''''Forrest Gump''''' is a 1994 American [[drama film]] directed by [[Robert Zemeckis]]. An adaptation of the [[Forrest Gump (novel)|1986 novel]] by [[Winston Groom]], the film's screenplay was written by [[Eric Roth]]. It stars [[Tom Hanks]] in the title role, alongside [[Robin Wright]], [[Gary Sinise]], [[Mykelti Williamson]], and [[Sally Field]] in lead roles. The film follows the life of an [[Alabama]] man named Forrest Gump (Hanks) and his experiences in the [[20th century in the United States|20th-century United States]].

Principal photography took place between August and December 1993, mainly in [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], [[North Carolina]], and [[South Carolina]]. Extensive visual effects were used to incorporate Hanks into archived footage and to develop other scenes. The [[Forrest Gump (soundtrack)|soundtrack]] features songs reflecting the different periods seen in the film. Various interpretations have been made of the protagonist and the film's political symbolism.

''Forrest Gump'' was released in the United States on July 6, 1994, and received widespread critical acclaim for Zemeckis's direction, the performances (particularly those of Hanks and Sinise), story, writing, emotional weight, visual effects, music, character development and screenplay.{{citation needed|date=September 2025}} The film was a major success at the box office: it became the top-grossing film in the United States released that year and earned over {{US$|678.2{{nbsp}}million|link=yes}} worldwide during its theatrical run, making it the [[1994 in film|second-highest-grossing film of 1994]], behind ''[[The Lion King]]''. The soundtrack sold over 12 million copies. ''Forrest Gump'' is often regarded as one of the [[List of films considered the best|greatest and most influential films ever made]], and won six [[67th Academy Awards|Academy Awards]]: [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]], [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]], [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] for Hanks, [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Adapted Screenplay]], [[Academy Award for Best Visual Effects|Best Visual Effects]], and [[Academy Award for Best Film Editing|Best Film Editing]]. It received many [[List of accolades received by Forrest Gump|award nominations]], including [[Golden Globe]]s, [[British Academy Film Awards]], and [[Screen Actors Guild Awards]].

In 2011, the [[Library of Congress]] selected the film for preservation in the United States [[National Film Registry]] as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".<ref name="Forrest Gump join Library of Congress film trove">{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-11-240/2011-national-film-registry-more-than-a-box-of-chocolates/2011-12-28/|title=2011 National Film Registry More Than a Box of Chocolates|website=Library of Congress|access-date=June 2, 2019|archive-date=November 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114151454/https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-11-240/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/forrest-gump-bollywood-remake-works-1194721|title='Forrest Gump' Bollywood Remake in the Works|website=The Hollywood Reporter|date=March 14, 2019|access-date=March 15, 2019|archive-date=March 15, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190315034755/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/forrest-gump-bollywood-remake-works-1194721|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Complete National Film Registry Listing |url=https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/complete-national-film-registry-listing/|access-date=October 2, 2020|website=Library of Congress|archive-date=March 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305191832/https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/complete-national-film-registry-listing/|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Plot ==
<!-- Per [[WP:FILMPLOT]], film plot summaries should be between 400 and 700 words.-->
In 1981 a feather lands at a bus stop in [[Savannah, Georgia]], where Forrest Gump recounts his life story to strangers on a bus bench.

In 1950s [[Alabama]], Forrest is fitted with [[Orthotics|leg braces]] to correct [[Scoliosis|a curved spine]]. His mother runs a boarding house out of their home. Among their tenants is [[Elvis Presley]], who incorporates Forrest's jerky dance movements into his performances. On his first day of school, Forrest befriends a girl named Jenny Curran.

Forrest is often bullied because of his physical disability and low intelligence. While fleeing from several bullies, his leg braces break off, revealing Forrest to be a very fast runner. This talent eventually allows him to receive a [[American football|football]] [[scholarship]] at the [[University of Alabama]] in 1963, where he is coached by [[Bear Bryant]], and witnesses [[List of governors of Alabama|Governor]] [[George Wallace]]'s [[Stand in the Schoolhouse Door]], during which he returns a dropped book to [[Vivian Malone Jones]]. Forrest becomes a top [[kick returner]], is named to the [[College Football All-America Team|All-American team]], and meets President [[John F. Kennedy]] at the [[White House]].

After graduating college in 1966, Forrest is drafted into the [[U.S. Army]] where he befriends Benjamin Buford "Bubba" Blue, who convinces Forrest to go into the [[shrimping]] business with him after their service. They arrive in [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]] in 1967 and serve with the [[9th Infantry Division (United States)|9th Infantry Division]] in the [[Mekong Delta]]. Their platoon is ambushed during a patrol, Bubba is killed in action, and Forrest saves several wounded platoon mates{{snd}}including his lieutenant, Dan Taylor. Forrest is awarded the [[Medal of Honor]] for his heroism by President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]].

At the [[Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War|anti-war]] [[March on the Pentagon]] rally, Forrest meets [[Abbie Hoffman]] and briefly reunites with Jenny, who has been living a [[hippie]] lifestyle. He also develops a talent for [[ping-pong]], and becomes a sports celebrity as he competes against Chinese teams in [[ping-pong diplomacy]], earning him an interview alongside [[John Lennon]] on ''[[The Dick Cavett Show]]'', influencing the song "[[Imagine (John Lennon song)|Imagine]]". He spends the 1971 New Year's Eve in New York City with Dan, who lost his legs in Vietnam and has become deeply embittered. Forrest meets President [[Richard Nixon]], who grants him a room in the [[Watergate complex|Watergate Hotel]], where he unwittingly exposes the [[Watergate scandal]].

Discharged from the Army, Forrest returns to Alabama and endorses a ping-pong paddle manufacturer, using the earnings to buy a shrimping boat in [[Bayou La Batre]], fulfilling his promise to Bubba. Dan joins Forrest in 1974, and their lack of success changes when their boat becomes the sole survivor of [[Hurricane Carmen]]. They create the ''Bubba Gump Shrimp Company'', Dan reconciles himself to his disabilities, and finally thanks Forrest for saving his life. Forrest returns home to his mother as she dies of [[cancer]]. Dan invests in [[Apple Inc.|Apple Computer]] and the two become millionaires, but Forrest also shares their earnings with the community and Bubba's family.

Jenny returns to stay with Forrest in 1976, recovering from years of child abuse, drugs, and prostitution. When Forrest proposes to her, she tells him she loves him and the two have sex, but she leaves the next morning. Heartbroken, Forrest spends the next three years in a relentless cross-country run.

In 1981, Forrest reveals that he is waiting at the bus stop because he received a letter from Jenny inviting him to visit. She introduces him to their son, Forrest Gump Jr. Jenny tells Forrest she is sick with an unknown incurable virus, and the three move back to Alabama. Jenny and Forrest marry, but she dies a year later. Forrest sends his son off on his first day of school as the feather from the movie's opening floats on the wind.

== Cast ==
{{multiple image
| total_width = 300px
| footer      = Tom Hanks and Gary Sinise on the film set in 1993
| image1      = TomHanksForrestGump94.jpg
| alt1        = A man is at the center of the image smiling into the camera. He is sitting on a blue crate and has his hands resting on his legs.
| image2      = GarySiniseDanTaylorForrestGump94.jpg
| alt2        = A man is at the center of the image looking at the camera. He is dressed in Vietnam War-era military attire
}}
* [[Tom Hanks]] as Forrest Gump: At an early age, Forrest is deemed to have [[IQ classification|a below-average IQ]] of 75. He has an endearing character and shows devotion to his loved ones and duties, character traits that bring him into many life-changing situations. Along the way, he encounters many historical figures and events throughout his life. Hanks also briefly plays [[Nathan Bedford Forrest]] in ''[[The Birth of a Nation]]'' scene.
** Michael Conner Humphreys as young Forrest Gump: Hanks revealed in interviews that instead of having Humphreys copy his accent, he incorporated Humphreys' unique Southern accented drawl into the older character's accent.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cjdnA2hBTI |title=Tom Hanks on the Inspiration for Forrest Gump {{!}} Life in Pictures |date=2018-11-21 |last=BAFTA Guru |access-date=2024-07-09 |via=YouTube}}</ref> 
* [[Robin Wright]] as Jenny Curran: Forrest's childhood friend with whom he immediately falls in love, and never stops loving throughout his life. A victim of [[child sexual abuse]] at the hands of her bitter, widowed father, Jenny embarks on a different path from Forrest, leading a self-destructive life and becoming part of the [[hippie]] movement in California in the 1960s and the following [[Me Decade]]'s sex and drug culture of the 1970s. She re-enters Forrest's life at various times in adulthood. Jenny eventually becomes a waitress in Savannah, Georgia, where she lives in an apartment with her (and Forrest's) son, Forrest Jr. They eventually get married, but soon afterward she dies from complications due to an unnamed disease. This unknown disease was intended by Winston Groom, the author of the original novel, to be [[Hepatitis C]], itself an "unknown virus" until defined in April 1989,<ref name="choo">{{cite journal | vauthors = Choo QL, Kuo G, Weiner AJ, Overby LR, Bradley DW, Houghton M | title = Isolation of a cDNA clone derived from a blood-borne non-A, non-B viral hepatitis genome | journal = Science | volume = 244 | issue = 4902 | pages = 359–62 | date = April 1989 | pmid = 2523562 | doi = 10.1126/science.2523562 | url = http://courses.washington.edu/conj504/readings/polyak_reading1.pdf | citeseerx = 10.1.1.469.3592 | bibcode = 1989Sci...244..359C | author-link4 = Lacy Overby | access-date = April 17, 2021 | archive-date = February 26, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210226032227/http://courses.washington.edu/conj504/readings/polyak_reading1.pdf | url-status = live | issn=0036-8075}}</ref><ref name="kuo">{{cite journal | vauthors = Kuo G, Choo QL, Alter HJ, Gitnick GL, Redeker AG, Purcell RH, Miyamura T, Dienstag JL, Alter MJ, Stevens CE | display-authors = 6 | title = An assay for circulating antibodies to a major etiologic virus of human non-A, non-B hepatitis | journal = Science | volume = 244 | issue = 4902 | pages = 362–4 | date = April 1989 | pmid = 2496467 | doi = 10.1126/science.2496467 | bibcode = 1989Sci...244..362K }}</ref> although some of the makers of the film have said that they intended for the unknown disease to have been [[HIV/AIDS]].<ref>{{cite news
 | last =Polowy
 | first =Kevin
 | title =The 'Forrest Gump' sequel that never was, from O.J. to Oklahoma City
 | newspaper =[[Yahoo! News|Yahoo! Entertainment]]
 | language =English
 | publisher =[[Yahoo!]]
 | date =March 18, 2019
 | url =https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/forrest-gump-sequel-never-o-j-oklahoma-city-192839355.html
 | quote =It [the Forrest Gump sequel] was gonna start with his little boy having AIDS. And people wouldn't go to class with him in Florida. We had a funny sequence where they were [desegregation] busing in Florida at the same time, so people were angry about either the busing, or [their] kids having to go to school with the kid who had AIDS. So there was a big conflict.
 | access-date =June 19, 2022
 | archive-date =June 20, 2022
 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20220620002709/https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/forrest-gump-sequel-never-o-j-oklahoma-city-192839355.html
 | url-status =live
 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.factinate.com/things/50-facts-forrest-gump-momma-didnt-tell/2/ |title=Facts About Forrest Gump That Momma Didn't Tell You – Page 2 of 51 |date=January 8, 2017 |access-date=June 17, 2020 |archive-date=June 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617110717/https://www.factinate.com/things/50-facts-forrest-gump-momma-didnt-tell/2/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://newravel.com/uncategorized/forrest-gump-facts/ |title=Forrest Gump Left Out an Important Character Detail They Hoped Audiences Wouldn't Notice |date=March 2017 |access-date=June 17, 2020 |archive-date=June 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617134411/https://newravel.com/uncategorized/forrest-gump-facts/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
** [[Hanna R. Hall]] as young Jenny Curran.
* [[Gary Sinise]] as [[First lieutenant|Lieutenant]] Dan Taylor: Forrest and Bubba Blue's platoon leader during the Vietnam War, whose ancestors have died in every U.S. war and who regards it as his destiny to do the same. After losing his legs in an ambush and being rescued against his will by Forrest, he is initially bitter and antagonistic toward Forrest for leaving him a "cripple" and denying him his family's destiny, falling into a deep depression. He later serves as Forrest's first mate at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, gives most of the orders, becomes wealthy with Forrest, and regains his will to live. He ultimately forgives and thanks Forrest for saving his life. By the end of the film, he is engaged to be married to his fiancée Susan and is sporting "magic legs" – [[Titanium Beta C|titanium alloy]] [[prosthetics]] that allow him to walk again.
* [[Mykelti Williamson]] as Benjamin Buford "Bubba" Blue: Bubba was originally supposed to be the senior partner in the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, but due to his death in [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]], their platoon leader, Dan Taylor, took his place. The company posthumously carried his name. Forrest later gave Bubba's mother ([[Marlena Smalls]]) Bubba's share of the business. Throughout filming, Williamson wore a lip attachment to create Bubba's protruding lip.<ref name="BubbaLip">{{cite news|last=Daly |first=Sean |title=Mykelti Williamson later said the 'Forrest Gump' role nearly ruined his acting career |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_n17_v92/ai_19783689/ |work=[[Jet (magazine)|Jet]] |publisher=[[FindArticles]] |date=September 15, 1997 |access-date=July 2, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091006041319/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_n17_v92/ai_19783689/ |archive-date=October 6, 2009}}</ref>
* [[Sally Field]] as Mrs. Gump: Forrest's mother. Field reflected on the character, "She's a woman who loves her son unconditionally. ... A lot of her dialogue sounds like slogans, and that's just what she intends."<ref name="MamaGump">{{cite news|last=Wuntch|first=Philip|title=In character – Sally Field finding the good roles|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SAEC&p_theme=saec&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0F223282B1F7BF2A&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|format=Fee required|work=[[San Antonio Express-News]]|date=July 18, 1994|access-date=July 2, 2009|archive-date=October 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009013246/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SAEC&p_theme=saec&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0F223282B1F7BF2A&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[Haley Joel Osment]] as Forrest Gump Jr.: Osment was cast in the film after the casting director noticed him in a 1993 [[Pizza Hut]] commercial. It was his debut feature film role.<ref name="OsmentPizza">{{cite news|last=Daly|first=Sean|title=Haley Joel Osment on Robots and Reality|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=BN&p_theme=bn&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0ED0BE811A53FD6B&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|format=Fee required|work=[[The Buffalo News]]|date=July 1, 2001|access-date=July 2, 2009|archive-date=October 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009052644/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=BN&p_theme=bn&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0ED0BE811A53FD6B&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hunt |first=Elle |date=2020-07-20 |title='I grew a beard to try to hide in public': Haley Joel Osment on success after child stardom |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/jul/20/haley-joel-osment-on-the-sixth-sense-a-lot-of-child-actors-have-a-positive-experience |access-date=2023-10-20 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
* [[Peter Dobson]] as [[Elvis Presley]]: Although [[Kurt Russell]] was uncredited, he provided the voice for Elvis in the scene.<ref name="RussellElvis">{{cite news|last=Eler |first=Robert K. |title=598-page encyclopedia covers a whole lot of Elvis |url=http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2009/jan/22/598-page-encyclopedia-covers-whole-lot-el-20090122/?print |format=Fee required |work=[[Arkansas Democrat Gazette]] |date=January 22, 2009 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721061235/http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2009/jan/22/598-page-encyclopedia-covers-whole-lot-el-20090122/?print |archive-date=July 21, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* [[Dick Cavett]] as himself: Cavett played a [[De-aging in film|de-aged]] version of himself in the 1970s, with [[makeup]] applied to make him appear younger. Consequently, Cavett is the only well-known figure in the film to play a [[cameo role]] rather than be represented through the use of [[archival footage]] like [[John Lennon]], [[Alabama]] Governor [[George Wallace]], and Presidents [[John F. Kennedy]], [[Lyndon B. Johnson]], and [[Richard Nixon]].<ref name="DVDCavett">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Seeing is Believing: The Visual Effects of Forrest Gump-John Lennon with Dick Cavett)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref>
*[[Sam Anderson]] as Principal Hancock: Forrest's elementary school principal.
*[[Geoffrey Blake (actor)|Geoffrey Blake]] as Wesley: A member of the [[Students for a Democratic Society|SDS]] group and Jenny's abusive boyfriend.
*[[Siobhan Fallon Hogan]] as Dorothy Harris: The school bus driver who drives Forrest, and later his son, to school.
* [[Sonny Shroyer]] as Coach [[Paul "Bear" Bryant]].
* [[Grand L. Bush]], [[Michael Jace]], Conor Kennelly, and Teddy Lane Jr. as the [[Black Panthers]].
* Richard D'Alessandro as [[Abbie Hoffman]].
* Tiffany Salerno and Marla Sucharetza as "Cunning" Carla and "Long-Limbs" Lenore: a couple of prostitutes that Forrest and Dan spend a New Year's evening with and later turn away.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tiffany_salerno | title=Tiffany Salerno – Rotten Tomatoes | website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] | access-date=October 12, 2022 | archive-date=October 12, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221012102231/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/tiffany_salerno | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/marla-sucharetza | title=Marla Sucharetza – Rotten Tomatoes | website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] | access-date=October 12, 2022 | archive-date=October 12, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221012102501/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/marla-sucharetza | url-status=live }}</ref>

== Production ==
=== Pre-production and script ===
{{Main|Forrest Gump (novel)|l1 = ''Forrest Gump'' (novel)}}

{{Quote box |width=30em|bgcolor=#c6dbf7|quote="The writer, Eric Roth, departed substantially from the book. We flipped the two elements of the book, making the love story primary and the fantastic adventures secondary. Also, the book was cynical and colder than the movie. In the movie, Gump is a completely decent character, always true to his word. He has no agenda and no opinion about anything except Jenny, his mother and God."|source=—director [[Robert Zemeckis]]<ref name="BookChanges" />}}

The film is based on the 1986 [[Forrest Gump (novel)|novel]] by [[Winston Groom]]. Both center on the character of Forrest Gump. However, the film primarily focuses on the first eleven chapters of the novel before skipping ahead to the end of the novel, with the founding of Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and the meeting with Forrest Jr. In addition to skipping some parts of the novel, the film adds several aspects to Gump's life that do not occur in the novel, such as his needing leg braces as a child and his run across the United States.<ref name="MoviesBook">{{cite news|last=Delarte|first=Alonso |title=Movies by the Book: Forrest Gump|work=Bob's Poetry Magazine|date=February 2004|url=http://bobspoetry.com/Bobs01Fe.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327090919/http://bobspoetry.com/Bobs01Fe.pdf |archive-date=March 27, 2009|page=24|access-date=July 2, 2009}}</ref>

Gump's core character and personality are also changed from the novel; among other things, his film character is less of a [[savant]] – in the novel, while playing football at the university, he fails craft and gym but receives a perfect score in an advanced physics class he is enrolled in by his coach to satisfy his college requirements.<ref name="MoviesBook" /> The novel also features Gump as an [[astronaut]], a [[professional wrestler]], and a [[chess]] player.<ref name="MoviesBook" />

The book had a bidding war regarding an adaptation even before publication, with [[Wendy Finerman]] and [[Steve Tisch]] acquiring them by joining forces with [[Warner Bros.]], where Finerman's husband [[Mark Canton]] was president of production.<ref name=nyt>{{cite news |author=Grimes, William |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/01/movies/following-the-star-of-a-winsome-idiot.html?scp=28&sq=Forrest%20Gump&st=cse |title=Following the Star Of a Winsome Idiot |work=The New York Times |date=September 1, 1994 |access-date=June 28, 2012 |archive-date=November 22, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181122145911/https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/01/movies/following-the-star-of-a-winsome-idiot.html?scp=28&sq=Forrest |url-status=live }}</ref> Groom was paid $500,000 and also wrote the first three first drafts of the screenplay, which leaned closer to the events of the novel.<ref name=dad>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-07-ca-24436-story.html|title=Forrest Gump's Proud Dad|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|author=Epstein, Robert|date=August 7, 1994|access-date=February 14, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214231013/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-07-ca-24436-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> After ''[[Rain Man]]'' told the story of a savant, Warner Bros. lost interest in the picture, and by 1990 the project was in [[Turnaround (filmmaking)|turnaround]]. Finerman contacted [[Columbia Pictures]], who went on to reject it,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-10-ca-25605-story.html|title=One Studio's Trash Is Another's Treasure|work=Los Angeles Times|author=Welkos, Robert W.|date=August 10, 1994|access-date=February 14, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214233845/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-08-10-ca-25605-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> while hiring [[Eric Roth]] to rewrite the script. Roth and Finerman kept in contact with Groom to ensure the script was historically accurate.<ref name=dad/> Roth delivered a screenplay in 1992, which [[Paramount Pictures]] chairwoman [[Sherry Lansing]] liked enough to bring the project to her studio, who acquired the rights from Warner Bros. in exchange for the script for ''[[Executive Decision]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/13/movies/gump-a-9-year-personal-campaign.html|title='Gump,' a 9-Year Personal Campaign|work=The New York Times|author=Weinraub, Bernard|date=July 13, 1994|access-date=June 28, 2012|archive-date=May 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150526103500/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/13/movies/gump-a-9-year-personal-campaign.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=thr/>

[[Ivan Reitman]], [[Penny Marshall]] and [[Terry Gilliam]] passed on the project before [[Robert Zemeckis]] was hired.<ref>{{cite video|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LvCGFJd17Q|title=Penny Marshall Discusses Passing on Directing "Forrest Gump"|publisher=[[Larry King]]|access-date=February 14, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214233844/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LvCGFJd17Q|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="GilliamDirect">{{cite web |last=Plume |first=Kenneth |url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/644/644724p1.html |title=Gilliam on Grimm |website=IGN |page=3 |date=August 24, 2005 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081224124306/http://movies.ign.com/articles/644/644724p1.html |archive-date=December 24, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=thr>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/throwback-thursday-forrest-gump-ran-733915/|title=Throwback Thursday: 'Forrest Gump' Ran Away With the Box Office in 1994|author=Higgins, Bill|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=September 18, 2014|access-date=February 14, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214233844/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/throwback-thursday-forrest-gump-ran-733915/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Barry Sonnenfeld]] was attached to the film, but left to direct ''[[Addams Family Values]]''.<ref name="BarryDirect">{{cite magazine |last=Fretts |first=Bruce |title=Get Barry |url=https://ew.com/article/1995/11/03/get-barry/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |page=2 |date=November 3, 1995 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090425194723/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,299341,00.html |archive-date=April 25, 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Casting ===
[[John Travolta]] was the original choice to play the title role and later said that passing on the role was a mistake.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-40271801|title=9 stars who turned down great film roles|last=Smith|first=Neil|date=June 16, 2017|work=BBC News|access-date=June 29, 2017|language=en-GB|archive-date=June 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629191413/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-40271801|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://celebs.answers.com/movies/iconic-roles-and-the-stars-who-regret-turning-them-down?param4=fb-us-mo-gut#slide11 |title=Iconic Roles and the Stars Who Regret Turning Them Down |publisher=Celebs.Answers.com |access-date=April 1, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222152251/http://celebs.answers.com/movies/iconic-roles-and-the-stars-who-regret-turning-them-down?param4=fb-us-mo-gut |archive-date=February 22, 2014 }}</ref><ref name="JTRole">{{cite news|author=''Forbes'' staff |title=Star Misses – 4) Forrest Gump Starring ... John Travolta |url=https://www.forbes.com/2009/02/25/nicole-kidman-gwyneth-paltrow-kate-winslet-business-media_star_misses_slide_5.html?thisSpeed=30000 |work=Forbes |date=February 25, 2009 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100722063736/http://www.forbes.com/2009/02/25/nicole-kidman-gwyneth-paltrow-kate-winslet-business-media_star_misses_slide_5.html?thisSpeed=30000 |archive-date=July 22, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Bill Murray]], [[Chevy Chase]], and [[Matthew Broderick]] were also considered for the role.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2019/07/05/forrest-gump-movie-celebrates-25th-anniversary/1634248001/# |title=Is there a real Forrest Gump? 25 years after Tom Hanks' film, we have answers |work=USA Today |last=Alexander |first=Bryan |date=July 5, 2019 |access-date=August 14, 2023}}</ref> [[Sean Penn]] had stated in an interview that he had been the second choice for the role; he would later portray a character with a disability in the 2001 film ''[[I Am Sam]]''. Tom Hanks revealed that he signed on to the film after an hour and a half of reading the script.<ref name="HankSign">{{cite news|last=Mal|first=Vincent|title=Show Some Gumption Hanks Excels in Tale of a Simple Man's Brushes with Fame|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=VP&p_theme=vp&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAFF785EECC284D&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|format=Fee required|work=[[The Virginian-Pilot]]|date=July 6, 1994|access-date=July 1, 2009|archive-date=October 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009013256/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=VP&p_theme=vp&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAFF785EECC284D&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|url-status=live}}</ref> He initially wanted to ease Forrest's pronounced Southern accent, but was eventually persuaded by director [[Robert Zemeckis]] to portray the heavy accent stressed in the novel.<ref name="HankSign" /> Hanks also said it took him three days producing unusable footage in order to learn how to play the role.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.startribune.com/no-oscar-nom-for-tom-7-of-the-best-tom-hanks-movies-to-remind-you-how-talented-he-is/600029750/|title=No Oscar nom for Tom? 7 of the best Tom Hanks movies to remind you how talented he is|last=Hewitt|first=Chris|work=[[Star Tribune]]|date=March 3, 2021|access-date=March 11, 2021|archive-date=June 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629191413/https://www.startribune.com/no-oscar-nom-for-tom-7-of-the-best-tom-hanks-movies-to-remind-you-how-talented-he-is/600029750/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Winston Groom]], who wrote the original novel, describes the film as having taken the "rough edges" off the character whom he had envisioned being played by [[John Goodman]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Grimes|first=William|title=Following the Star Of a Winsome Idiot|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/01/movies/following-the-star-of-a-winsome-idiot.html|work=The New York Times|access-date=November 16, 2013|date=September 1, 1994|archive-date=February 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201221457/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/01/movies/following-the-star-of-a-winsome-idiot.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Additionally, Tom's younger brother [[Jim Hanks]] is his acting double in the movie for the scenes whenever Forrest was running.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://nypost.com/2014/09/05/secrets-behind-the-infamous-forrest-gump-running-scene/| title= Secrets behind the infamous 'Forrest Gump' running scene| date= September 5, 2014| access-date= August 2, 2022| archive-date= August 2, 2022| archive-url= 
https://web.archive.org/web/20220802201731/https://nypost.com/2014/09/05/secrets-behind-the-infamous-forrest-gump-running-scene/amp/| url-status= 
live|work=The New York Post}}</ref> Tom's daughter Elizabeth Hanks appears in the movie as the girl on the school bus who refuses to let young Forrest sit next to her.<ref>{{cite web|last=Stark|first=Chandler|url=
https://www.looper.com/960822/small-details-you-missed-in-forrest-gump/| title= Small Details You Missed In Forrest Gump|date=September 5, 2014| access-date=July 6, 2024|work=Looper}}</ref> Sally Field agreed to take on the role of Mrs. Gump after reading the script.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.glamour.com/story/sally-field-icons-only |title=Sally Field Says Fame Is So ‘Psychologically Odd’ |work=Glamour |last=Radloff |first=Jessica |date=December 6, 2022 |access-date=July 31, 2025}}</ref> [[Joe Pesci]] and [[Kevin Bacon]] were considered for the role of Lieutenant Dan Taylor, which was eventually given to [[Gary Sinise]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.eonline.com/photos/28395/25-facts-about-forrest-gump|title=25 Facts About Forrest Gump|access-date=August 2, 2022|archive-date=August 2, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220802202242/https://www.eonline.com/photos/28395/25-facts-about-forrest-gump |work=Entertainment Online|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kevin-bacon-forrest-gump_n_3732424 |title=Kevin Bacon Turned Down Role Of Lt. Dan In 'Forrest Gump' |work=The Huffington Post |date=August 9, 2013 |access-date=September 3, 2024}}</ref> Sinise drew inspiration from the struggles that [[Vietnam War]] veterans, some on his wife's side of his family, were going through when returning from serving in Vietnam.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottking/2021/03/01/why-serving-honoring-veterans-became-gary-sinises-lifelong-mission/ | title=Why Serving, Honoring Veterans Became Gary Sinise's "Lifelong Mission" | website=[[Forbes]] }}</ref> [[David Alan Grier]], [[Ice Cube]] and [[Dave Chappelle]] were offered the role of Benjamin Buford Blue, but all three turned it down.<ref name="BMRole">{{cite news|last=Wiser|first=Paige|title=Might-have-beens who (thankfully) weren't: The wacky world of Hollywood's strangest casting calls|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=1161512A55EF6310&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|format=Fee required|work=Chicago Sun-Times|date=December 17, 2006|access-date=July 1, 2009|archive-date=October 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009052703/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=1161512A55EF6310&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="CubeGrierBubba">{{cite news |last=Boucher |first=Geoff |title=On the Trail of a Hollywood Hyphenate; Rapper/Actor/Writer/Producer/Director. Is There Room For Anything Else on Ice Cube's Resume? |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-mar-26-tm-12661-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=March 26, 2000 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110108044726/http://articles.latimes.com/2000/mar/26/magazine/tm-12661 |archive-date=January 8, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref> Chappelle, who said he believed the film would be unsuccessful, has been reported as saying that he regrets not taking the role. Hanks was aware of Chappelle's disappointment in missing out on the part and agreed to work with him in a future movie, which ended up being ''[[You've Got Mail]]''.<ref name="BMRole" /> Rapper [[Tupac Shakur]] also auditioned.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/tupac-shakur-auditioned-for-an-iconic-movie-role-that-went-to-tom-hanks.html/ | title=Tupac Shakur Auditioned for an Iconic Movie Role That Went to Tom Hanks | date=July 28, 2021 | access-date=October 27, 2022 | archive-date=October 27, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221027070449/https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/tupac-shakur-auditioned-for-an-iconic-movie-role-that-went-to-tom-hanks.html/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Filming ===
[[File:ForrestGump-Jenny-Boat-2055.jpg|thumb|The shrimping boat Gump used in the film]]
Filming began in August 1993 and ended in December of that year.<ref name="FilminDates">{{cite news|last=McKenna|first=Kristine|author-link=Kristine McKenna|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/60281832.html?dids=60281832:60281832&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Dec+19%2C+1993&author=KRISTINE+McKENNA&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Cover+Story+He%27s+Serious+About+This+One+For+Tom+Hanks%2C+it%27s+been+a+long+ride+from+%60Splash%27+to+%60Philadelphia%2C%27+in+which+the+likable+comedy+actor+plays+an+AIDS+patient+who%27s+fired+from+his+job.+What+made+him+take+the+leap%3F+It+has+a+lot+to+do+with+what+he%27s+done+so+far%2C+the+times+and%2C+well%2C+life&pqatl=google|title=He's Serious About This One For Tom Hanks, it's been a long ride from 'Splash' to 'Philadelphia,' in which the likable comedy actor plays an AIDS patient who's fired from his job|work=Los Angeles Times|format=Fee required|date=December 19, 1993|access-date=June 13, 2010|archive-date=January 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111205510/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/60281832.html?dids=60281832:60281832&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Dec+19%2C+1993&author=KRISTINE+McKENNA&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Cover+Story+He%27s+Serious+About+This+One+For+Tom+Hanks%2C+it%27s+been+a+long+ride+from+%60Splash%27+to+%60Philadelphia%2C%27+in+which+the+likable+comedy+actor+plays+an+AIDS+patient+who%27s+fired+from+his+job.+What+made+him+take+the+leap%3F+It+has+a+lot+to+do+with+what+he%27s+done+so+far%2C+the+times+and%2C+well%2C+life&pqatl=google|url-status=dead}}</ref> Although most of the film is set in Alabama, filming took place mainly in and around [[Beaufort, South Carolina]], as well as parts of coastal Virginia and North Carolina,<ref name="HankSign" /> including a running shot on the [[Blue Ridge Parkway]] near [[Grandfather Mountain]] where a part of the road subsequently became known as "Forrest Gump Curve".<ref>Grandfather Mountain audio tour</ref><ref>[https://archive.today/20130126081418/http://www.indianagazette.com/a_news/article_6088508b-000c-5c86-a60e-5ea14a1d9112.html Must-see sites abound along Blue Ridge Parkway – The Indiana Gazette Online: Indiana County Area News]. Indianagazette.com (June 12, 2011). Retrieved on March 7, 2013.</ref> Downtown portions of the fictional town of Greenbow were filmed in [[Varnville, South Carolina]].<ref>[http://www.movie-locations.com/movies/f/ForrestGump.html Film locations for Forrest Gump (1994)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806231350/http://www.movie-locations.com/movies/f/ForrestGump.html |date=August 6, 2019}}. Movie-locations.com. Retrieved on March 7, 2013.</ref> The studio was about to pull the plug on the film, until Zemeckis and Hanks cut the running sequence in the middle. Zemeckis and Hanks used their own money for the sequence.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/tom-hanks-and-steven-spielberg-on-indiana-jones-173307833.html | title=Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg on 'Indiana Jones 5' and Saving 'Forrest Gump' | date=October 9, 2015 }}</ref> The scene of Forrest running through Vietnam while under fire was filmed on [[Hunting Island State Park]] and [[Fripp Island, South Carolina]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Katherine |title=Island getaway is motion-picture perfect |work=St. Petersburg Times |url=http://www.sptimes.com/2004/06/27/Travel/Island_getaway_is_mot.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110917010438/http://www.sptimes.com/2004/06/27/Travel/Island_getaway_is_mot.shtml |archive-date=September 17, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Additional filming took place on the [[Biltmore Estate]] in [[Asheville, North Carolina]]. 
[[File:Forrest Gump Point Monument Valley November 2018 003.jpg|thumb|The location along [[U.S. Route 163]] in [[Monument Valley]] where Forrest ends his run]]
The Gump family home set was built along the [[Combahee River]] near [[Yemassee, South Carolina]], and the nearby land was used to film Curran's home as well as some of the Vietnam scenes.<ref name="DVDProdDesign">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Building the World of Gump: Production Design)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref> Over 20&nbsp;[[sabal|palmetto]] trees were planted to improve the Vietnam scenes.<ref name="DVDProdDesign" /> Forrest Gump narrated his life's story at the northern edge of [[Chippewa Square]] in [[Savannah, Georgia]], as he sat at a bus stop bench. There were other scenes filmed in and around the Savannah area as well, including a running shot on the [[Richard V. Woods Memorial Bridge]] in Beaufort while he was being interviewed by the press, and on [[Bay Street (Savannah, Georgia)|West Bay Street]] in Savannah.<ref name="DVDProdDesign" /> Most of the college campus scenes were filmed in [[Los Angeles]] at the [[University of Southern California]]. The lighthouse that Forrest runs across to reach the Atlantic Ocean the first time is the [[Marshall Point Lighthouse]] in [[Port Clyde, Maine]]. Additional scenes were filmed in Arizona, Utah's [[Monument Valley]], and Montana's [[Glacier National Park (U.S.)|Glacier National Park]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=D'Arc|first1=James V.|title=When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah|date=2010|publisher=Gibbs Smith|location=Layton, Utah|isbn=9781423605874|edition=1st}}</ref>

=== Visual effects ===
[[File:ForrestGumpJFKScreenshot.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Black-and-white film screenshot showing the main character on the left looking toward another man, President Kennedy, (voiced by actor Jed Gillin), on the right. Kennedy is smiling and looking to his left. In the background, several men are looking in different directions and one is aiming a camera.|Gump with President Kennedy. A variety of visual effects were used to incorporate Hanks into archive footage with various historical figures and events.]]

[[Ken Ralston]] and his team at [[Industrial Light & Magic]] were responsible for the film's visual effects. Using [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] techniques, it was possible to depict Gump meeting deceased personages and shaking their hands. Hanks was first shot against a [[Chroma key|blue screen]] along with reference markers so that he could line up with the archive footage.<ref name="DVDEyes1">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Through the eyes of Forrest Gump)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|time=12:29|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref> To record the voices of the historical figures, voice actors were filmed and special effects were used to alter [[Lip sync#In films|lip-syncing]] for the new dialogue.<ref name="BookChanges">{{cite news|last=Mills|first=Bart|title=In 'Forrest Gump,' Historical Figures Speak for Themselves|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/24184772.html?dids=24184772:24184772&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jul+08%2C+1994&author=Bart+Mills.+Special+to+the+Tribune.&pub=Chicago+Tribune+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=IN+%60FORREST+GUMP%2C%27+HISTORICAL+FIGURES+SPEAK+FOR+THEMSELVES&pqatl=google|format=Fee required|work=Chicago Tribune|date=July 8, 1994|access-date=June 13, 2010|archive-date=July 7, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707202525/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/24184772.html?dids=24184772%3A24184772&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS%3AFT&type=current&date=Jul%2B08%2C%2B1994&author=Bart%2BMills.%2BSpecial%2Bto%2Bthe%2BTribune.&pub=Chicago%2BTribune%2B%28pre-1997%2BFulltext%29&desc=IN%2B%60FORREST%2BGUMP%2C%27%2BHISTORICAL%2BFIGURES%2BSPEAK%2BFOR%2BTHEMSELVES&pqatl=google|url-status=dead}}</ref> Archival footage was used and with the help of such techniques as [[chroma key]], [[image warping]], [[morphing]], and [[rotoscoping]], Hanks was integrated into it.

In one Vietnam War scene, Gump carries Bubba away from an incoming [[napalm]] attack. To create the effect, [[stunt actor]]s were initially used for [[compositing]] purposes. Then, Hanks and Williamson were filmed, with Williamson supported by a cable wire as Hanks ran with him. The explosion was then filmed, and the actors were digitally added to appear just in front of the explosions. The jet fighters and napalm canisters were also added by CGI.<ref name="DVDVietnam">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Seeing is Believing: The Visual Effects of Forrest Gump-Vietnam)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref>

The CGI removal of actor [[Gary Sinise]]'s legs, after his character had them amputated, was achieved by wrapping his legs with a blue fabric, which later facilitated the work of the "roto-paint" team to paint out his legs from every single frame. At one point, while hoisting himself into his [[wheelchair]], his legs are used for support.<ref name="DVDLegs">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Seeing is Believing: The Visual Effects of Forrest Gump-Lt. Dan's Legs)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref>

The scene where Forrest spots Jenny at a [[peace rally]] at the [[Lincoln Memorial]] and [[Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool|Reflecting Pool]] in Washington, D.C., required visual effects to create the large crowd of people. Over two days of filming, approximately 1,500 [[Extra (actor)|extras]] were used.<ref name="DVDEnhanReal">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Seeing is Believing: The Visual Effects of Forrest Gump-Enhancing Reality)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref> At each successive take, the extras were rearranged and moved into a different [[Cartesian coordinate system#Quadrants and octants|quadrant]] away from the camera. With the help of computers, the extras were multiplied to create a crowd of several hundred thousand people.<ref name="HankSign" /><ref name="DVDEnhanReal" />

== Reception ==

=== Box office ===
Produced on a budget of $55&nbsp;million, ''Forrest Gump'' opened in 1,332&nbsp;theaters in the United States and Canada on Wednesday, July 6, 1994, and grossed more than $8 million in its first two days before expanding on Friday to 1,595&nbsp;theaters and grossing $24,450,602 in its opening weekend, Paramount's biggest opening non-holiday weekend gross, surpassing the record set by ''[[The Addams Family (1991 film)|The Addams Family]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Screen International]]|date=July 15, 1994|title=Forrest's gumption puts him ahead|page=25}}</ref> Motion picture business consultant and screenwriter Jeffrey Hilton suggested to producer [[Wendy Finerman]] to double the P&A (film marketing budget) based on his viewing of an early print of the film. The budget was immediately increased, in line with his advice. In its opening weekend, the film placed [[List of 1994 box office number-one films in the United States|first at the US box office]], narrowly beating ''[[The Lion King]]'', which was in its fourth week of release.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-07-08-ca-13380-story.html|title='Forrest Gump' Off to Fast Start at Box Office|website=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=July 8, 1994 }}</ref> For the first twelve weeks of release, the film was in the top 3 at the US box office, topping the list 5 times, including in its tenth week of release, when it surpassed ''[[Raiders of the Lost Ark]]'' as Paramount's highest-grossing film in the United States and Canada.<ref name="WeekendBOX">{{cite web |title=Forrest Gump Weekend Box Office |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=weekend&id=forrestgump.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090903010146/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=weekend&id=forrestgump.htm |archive-date=September 3, 2009 |access-date=July 1, 2009 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Daily Variety]]|date=September 13, 1994|page=5|last=Greene|first=Jay|title=Daze of summer: B.O. does fade fast}}</ref> Paramount removed the film from release in the United States when its gross hit $300&nbsp;million in January 1995, and it was the second-highest-grossing film of the year, behind ''The Lion King'' with $305&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Klady |first=Leonard |date=January 16, 1995 |title='Dumber' still holds No. 1 spot at B.O. |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |page=16}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |date=January 23, 1995 |title=Domestic Box Office |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |page=14}}</ref> The film was reissued on February 17, 1995, after the [[Academy Awards]] nominations were announced.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Klady |first=Leonard |date=February 13, 1995 |title=Oscar talk fuels 'Fall's' gross fire |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |page=10}}</ref> After the reissue in 1,100 theaters, the film grossed an additional $29&nbsp;million in the United States and Canada, bringing its total to $329.7&nbsp;million, making it the third-highest-grossing film at that time behind only ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]'' and ''[[Jurassic Park (film)|Jurassic Park]]''.<ref name="WeekendBOX"/><ref name="DomesticGrosses">{{cite web |title=All Time Box Office Domestic Grosses |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/alltime/domestic.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180803190039/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/domestic.htm |archive-date=August 3, 2018 |access-date=December 11, 2019 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |date=October 17, 1994 |title=Top 100 All-Time Domestic Grosses |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |page=M-60}}</ref> [[Box Office Mojo]] estimates that the film sold over 78.5&nbsp;million tickets in the US and Canada in its initial theatrical run.<ref>{{cite web |title=Forrest Gump (1994) |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=forrestgump.htm&adjust_yr=1&p=.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160804215914/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=forrestgump.htm&adjust_yr=1&p=.htm |archive-date=August 4, 2016 |access-date=May 31, 2016 |website=Box Office Mojo}}</ref>

The film was the fastest grossing Paramount film to pass $100&nbsp;million (18 days), $200&nbsp;million (46 days; fourth fastest in history), and $300&nbsp;million (193 days) in box office receipts (at the time of its release).<ref name="Fastest100">{{cite web |title=Fastest to $100&nbsp;million |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/alltime/fastest.htm?page=100&p=.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190830125641/http://boxofficemojo.com/alltime/fastest.htm?page=100&p=.htm |archive-date=August 30, 2019 |access-date=July 1, 2009 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref><ref name="Fastest200">{{cite web |title=Fastest to $200&nbsp;million |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/alltime/fastest.htm?page=200&p=.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190830130011/http://boxofficemojo.com/alltime/fastest.htm?page=200&p=.htm |archive-date=August 30, 2019 |access-date=July 1, 2009 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Screen International]]|date=August 26, 1994|pages=2–3|title=$200,000,000 (advertisement)}}</ref><ref name="Fastest300">{{cite web |title=Fastest to $300&nbsp;million |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/alltime/fastest.htm?page=300&p=.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190830130011/http://boxofficemojo.com/alltime/fastest.htm?page=300&p=.htm |archive-date=August 30, 2019 |access-date=July 1, 2009 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref> After reissues, the film has gross receipts of $330,252,182 in the U.S. and Canada and $347,693,217 in international markets for a total of $677,945,399 worldwide. Ultimately, it finished as the fourth highest grossing [[1990s in film|film of the 1990s]] in the United States and Canada.<ref>{{cite web| title=Domestic Box Office By Decade – 1990s| url=http://www.boxofficereport.com/domestic1990s.html|work=Box Office Report |access-date=July 14, 2024}}</ref>

Even with such revenue, the film was known as a "successful failure"; due to distributors' and exhibitors' high fees, Paramount's "losses" clocked in at $62&nbsp;million, leaving executives realizing the necessity of better deals.<ref>McDonald, Paul, and Janet Wasko. The Contemporary Hollywood Film Industry. Malden: Blackwell, 2008. Pg:79 #</ref> This has also been associated with [[Hollywood accounting]], where expenses are inflated to minimize profit sharing.<ref>{{cite web |date=May 24, 1995 |title='Gump' a Smash but Still in the Red, Paramount Says : Movies: Writer, who is due to get 3% of net profits, hires lawyer to question the studio's accounting practices. |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-05-24-mn-5473-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116061744/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-05-24-mn-5473-story.html |archive-date=January 16, 2021 |access-date=January 3, 2021 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref>

''Forrest Gump'' held the record for being the highest-grossing Paramount film until it was overtaken by ''[[Titanic (1997 film)|Titanic]]'' three years later in 1997. However, it remained the highest-grossing film solely distributed by Paramount until it was surpassed by ''[[Shrek the Third]]'' 13 years later in 2007.<ref>{{cite web |title="Titanic' cruises full speed ahead, overtaking "Gump' |url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1998/02/09/titanic-cruises-full-speed-ahead-overtaking-gump/ |access-date=May 28, 2022 |archive-date=May 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528165328/https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1998/02/09/titanic-cruises-full-speed-ahead-overtaking-gump/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

For 12 years, it remained as the highest-grossing film starring Tom Hanks; it was surpassed in 2006 by ''[[The Da Vinci Code (film)|The Da Vinci Code]]''.<ref>{{cite web |date=June 18, 2006 |title=Tom Hanks' Biggest Film? Da Vinci Code! |url=https://deadline.com/2006/06/tom-hanks-biggest-movie-da-vinci-code-365/ |access-date=June 10, 2022 |archive-date=June 10, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220610220055/https://deadline.com/2006/06/tom-hanks-biggest-movie-da-vinci-code-365/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Critical reception ===
{{Rotten Tomatoes prose|score=75|count=158|average=7.80|consensus=Tom Hanks' rigorously earnest performance keeps ''Forrest Gump'' sincere even when it gets glib with American history, making for a whimsical odyssey of debatable wisdom but undeniable heart.|ref=yes |access-date=February 4, 2025}} At the website [[Metacritic]], the film earned a rating of 82 out of 100 based on 21 reviews by mainstream critics, indicating "universal acclaim".<ref name="Metacritic">{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/forrest-gump|title=''Forrest Gump'' Reviews|publisher=[[CBS Interactive]]|work=[[Metacritic]]|access-date=March 1, 2018|archive-date=May 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210514054429/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/forrest-gump|url-status=live}}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film a rare "A+" grade.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-cinemascore-matters-box-office-225563|title=Why CinemaScore Matters for Box Office|author=Pamela McClintock|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date=August 19, 2011|access-date=September 14, 2016|archive-date=April 26, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426043610/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-cinemascore-matters-box-office-225563|url-status=live}}</ref>

The story was commended by several critics. [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' wrote, "I've never met anyone like Forrest Gump in a movie before, and for that matter I've never seen a movie quite like 'Forrest Gump.' Any attempt to describe him will risk making the movie seem more conventional than it is, but let me try. It's a comedy, I guess. Or maybe a drama. Or a dream. The screenplay by [[Eric Roth]] has the complexity of modern fiction...The performance is a breathtaking balancing act between comedy and sadness, in a story rich in big laughs and quiet truths...What a magical movie."<ref name="EbertReview">{{cite news |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |title=Forrest Gump |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/forrest-gump-1994 |work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |date=July 6, 1994 |access-date=March 31, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100620132326/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F19940706%2FREVIEWS%2F407060301%2F1023 |archive-date=June 20, 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref> Todd McCarthy of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' wrote that the film "has been very well worked out on all levels, and manages the difficult feat of being an intimate, even delicate tale played with an appealingly light touch against an epic backdrop."<ref name="VarietyReview">{{cite news |last=McCarthy |first=Todd |title=Forrest Gump |url=https://variety.com/review/VE1117487968/ |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=July 10, 1994 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110729083909/http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=Variety100&reviewid=VE1117487968&content=jump&jump=review&category=1935&cs=1 |archive-date=July 29, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> In contrast, [[Anthony Lane]] of ''[[The New Yorker]]'' called the film "Warm, wise, and wearisome as hell."<ref name="NYorkerReview">{{cite news |last=Lane |first=Anthony |author-link=Anthony Lane |title=Forrest Gump |url=http://www.newyorker.com/arts/reviews/film/forrest_gump_zemeckis |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081218211414/http://www.newyorker.com/arts/reviews/film/forrest_gump_zemeckis |archive-date=December 18, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Owen Gleiberman]] of ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' said that the film was "glib, shallow, and monotonous" and "reduces the tumult of the last few decades to a virtual-reality theme park: a baby-boomer version of [[Disney's America]]."<ref name="EWReviewC">{{cite magazine |last=Gleiberman |first=Owen |title=Forrest Gump (1994) |url=https://ew.com/article/1994/07/15/forrest-gump/ |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |date=July 15, 1994 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101104074440/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,302943,00.html |archive-date=November 4, 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Gump garnered comparisons to fictional character [[Huckleberry Finn]], as well as U.S. politicians [[Ronald Reagan]], [[Pat Buchanan]] and [[Bill Clinton]].<ref name="GumpHuck">{{cite news |last=Hinson |first=Hal |title=Forrest Gump, Our National Folk Zero |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/review97/fforrestgump1.htm |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=August 14, 1994 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521095922/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/review97/fforrestgump1.htm |archive-date=May 21, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="GumpClinton">{{cite news |last=Rich |first=Frank |title=The Gump From Hope |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/21/opinion/journal-the-gump-from-hope.html |work=The New York Times |date=July 21, 1994 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110801011242/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/21/opinion/journal-the-gump-from-hope.html |archive-date=August 1, 2011 |url-status=live  }}</ref><ref name="WorldTime">{{cite news |last=Corliss |first=Richard |author2=Julie Grace |author3=Martha Smilgis |title=The World According to Gump |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,981196-2,00.html |magazine=Time |date=August 1, 1994 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110731152338/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,981196-2,00.html |archive-date=July 31, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Albert|first=Tim|title='The Ideas Made It, But I Didn't'|url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/04/22/pat-buchanan-trump-president-history-profile-215042/|work=Politico|date=June 2017|access-date=November 26, 2018|archive-date=June 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629191411/https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/04/22/pat-buchanan-trump-president-history-profile-215042/|url-status=live}}</ref> Peter Chomo writes that Gump acts as a "social mediator and as an agent of redemption in divided times".<ref name="WangStruggle">{{cite journal|last=Wang|first=Jennifer Hyland|title="A Struggle of Contending Stories": Race, Gender, and Political Memory in Forrest Gump|journal=Cinema Journal|pages=92–102|volume=39|issue=3|date=Spring 2000|doi=10.1353/cj.2000.0009|jstor=1225535|s2cid=144899487 |id={{ProQuest|222244908}}}}</ref> [[Peter Travers]] of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' called Gump "everything we admire in the American character – honest, brave, and loyal with a heart of gold."<ref name="RollStone">{{cite news|last=Travers|first=Peter|author-link=Peter Travers|title=Forrest Gump|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/5948073/review/5948074/forrest_gump|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=December 8, 2000|access-date=July 3, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080622125023/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/5948073/review/5948074/forrest_gump |archive-date=June 22, 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> ''[[The New York Times]]'' reviewer Janet Maslin called Gump a "hollow man" who is "self-congratulatory in his blissful ignorance, warmly embraced as the embodiment of absolutely nothing."<ref name="MaslinGump">{{cite news |last=Burr |first=Ty |title=Loss of innocence: 'Forrest Gump' at 10 |url=http://www.boston.com/news/globe/living/articles/2004/06/20/loss_of_innocence_forrest_gump_at_10/ |work=[[The Boston Globe]] |date=June 20, 1994 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113071954/http://www.boston.com/news/globe/living/articles/2004/06/20/loss_of_innocence_forrest_gump_at_10/ |archive-date=January 13, 2012 |url-status=live |quote=Film critic Pauline Kael came out of retirement to bash the film on a book tour; by year's end, New York Times reviewer Janet Maslin had gone from mildly praising the film in her initial review to putting it on her worst of 1994 list, describing Forrest as a "hollow man" who's 'self-congratulatory in his blissful ignorance, warmly embraced as the embodiment of absolutely nothing.'  }}</ref> Marc Vincenti of ''[[Palo Alto Weekly]]'' called the character "a pitiful stooge taking the pie of life in the face, thoughtfully licking his fingers."<ref name="PaloAltoGump">{{cite news|last=Vincenti |first=Marc |title=Forrest Gump |url=http://www.paloaltoonline.com/movies/reviews/Forrest-Gump?review_id=655 |work=[[Palo Alto Weekly]] |date=August 1994 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110616021948/http://www.paloaltoonline.com/movies/reviews/Forrest-Gump?review_id=655 |archive-date=June 16, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Bruce Kawin and [[Gerald Mast]]'s textbook on film history notes that Forrest Gump's dimness was a metaphor for glamorized nostalgia in that he represented a blank slate onto which the [[Baby Boomer generation]] projected their memories of those events.<ref name="mastshort">{{cite book|last=Mast|first=Gerald|title=A Short History of the Movies: 10th Edition|year=2007|publisher=Longman|location=London}}</ref>

=== Re-evaluation ===

Writing in 2004, ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' said, "Nearly a decade after it earned gazillions and swept the Oscars, Robert Zemeckis' ode to 20th-century America still represents one of cinema's most clearly drawn lines in the sand. One half of folks see it as an artificial piece of pop melodrama, while everyone else raves that it's sweet as a box of chocolates."<ref name="EWStrikeBack">{{cite magazine |last=Bal |first=Sumeet |author2=Marc Bernardin |author3=Monica Mehta |author4=Joshua Rich |author5=Erin Richter |author6=Michael Sauter |author7=Missy Schwartz |author8=Nancy Sidewater |title=Cry Hard 2 The Readers Strike Back |url=https://ew.com/article/2004/01/09/cry-hard-2-readers-strike-back/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=January 9, 2004 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110412042010/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,570497,00.html |archive-date=April 12, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2015, ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'' polled hundreds of academy members, asking them to re-vote on past controversial decisions. Academy members said that, given a second chance, they would award the 1994 Oscar for [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]] to ''[[The Shawshank Redemption]]'' instead.<ref>{{cite web |date=February 18, 2015 |title=Recount! Oscar Voters Today Would Make 'Brokeback Mountain' Best Picture Over 'Crash' |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/recount-oscar-voters-today-would-773522 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190122094645/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/recount-oscar-voters-today-would-773522 |archive-date=January 22, 2019 |access-date=January 3, 2020 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en}}</ref>

=== Author payment controversy ===

[[Winston Groom]] was paid $350,000 for the screenplay rights to his novel ''[[Forrest Gump (novel)|Forrest Gump]]'' and was contracted for a 3&nbsp;percent share of the film's ''net'' profits.<ref name="FGLostMoney">{{cite news|last=Horn|first=John|title='Forrest Gump' Has Yet to Make a Net Profit|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4182/is_19950525/ai_n10082506/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071214194835/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4182/is_19950525/ai_n10082506|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 14, 2007|work=[[The Journal Record]]|publisher=[[FindArticles]]|date=May 25, 1995|access-date=July 1, 2009}}</ref> However, Paramount and the film's producers did not pay him the percentage, using [[Hollywood accounting]] to posit that the blockbuster film lost money. Tom Hanks, by contrast, contracted for a percent share of the film's ''gross'' receipts instead of a salary, and he and director Zemeckis each received $40&nbsp;million.<ref name="FGLostMoney" /><ref name="HanksPoints">{{cite journal|last=Davis|first=Charles E.|title=Accounting is like a box of chocolates: A lesson in cost behavior|journal=Journal of Accounting Education|doi=10.1016/S0748-5751(97)00008-0|pages=307–318|volume=15|issue=3|date=Summer 1997}}<!--|access-date=July 1, 2009--></ref> In addition, Groom was not mentioned once in any of the film's six Oscar-winner speeches.<ref name="NoMention">{{cite news|last=Turan|first=Kenneth|title=Calender Goes to the Oscars Analysis Life Is Like a Box of Oscars But Statues Are Divvied Up, Quite Fittingly|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/22753498.html?dids=22753498:22753498&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+28%2C+1995&author=KENNETH+TURAN&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Calender+Goes+to+the+Oscars+Analysis+Life+Is+Like+a+Box+of+Oscars+But+Statues+Are+Divvied+Up%2C+Quite+Fittingly&pqatl=google|format=Fee required|work=Los Angeles Times|date=March 28, 1995|access-date=June 13, 2010|archive-date=July 7, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707203448/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/22753498.html?dids=22753498:22753498&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+28%2C+1995&author=KENNETH+TURAN&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Calender+Goes+to+the+Oscars+Analysis+Life+Is+Like+a+Box+of+Oscars+But+Statues+Are+Divvied+Up%2C+Quite+Fittingly&pqatl=google|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Groom's dispute with Paramount was later effectively resolved after Groom declared he was satisfied with Paramount's explanation of their accounting, this coinciding with Groom receiving a seven-figure contract with Paramount for film rights to another of his books, ''[[Gump & Co.]]''<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Gump-Author-Settles-Fight-With-Studio-3031365.php "'Gump' Author Settles Fight With Studio"]. ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]'' (June 15, 1995). Retrieved on June 9, 2015. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130617111830/http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Gump-Author-Settles-Fight-With-Studio-3031365.php |date=June 17, 2013 }}</ref> This film was never made, remaining in [[development hell]] for at least a dozen years.<ref name="2007Sequel">{{cite web|url=https://www.cinemablend.com/new/Forrest-Gump-Gets-A-Sequel-4626.html|title=Forrest Gump Gets A Sequel|last=Tyler|first=Josh|date=March 7, 2007|work=Cinema Blend|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101103161608/http://www.cinemablend.com/new/forrest-gump-gets-a-sequel-4626.html|archive-date=November 3, 2010|url-status=live|access-date=October 21, 2010}}</ref>

=== Home video ===

''Forrest Gump'' was first released on [[VHS]] on April 27, 1995, and on [[Laserdisc]] the following day. The laserdisc was [[THX]] certified and released without chapters, requiring the film be watched start to finish. Film magazines of the period stated this was at the request of Zemeckis who wanted viewers to enjoy the film in its entirety. It became the best-selling adult sell-through video, with sales of over 12 million.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=June 26, 1995|page=9|title=Studio product up to Par|last=Young|first=Paul F.}}</ref> 
A widescreen VHS release debuted a year later on September 10, 1996.<ref>{{cite news |last=King |first=Susan |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107891272/letterbox-brings-wide-screen-home/ |title='Letterbox' Brings Wide Screen Home |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230311215357/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107891272/letterbox-brings-wide-screen-home/ |date=August 16, 1996 |access-date=March 11, 2023 |archive-date=March 11, 2023 |page=96 |work=Times Staff Writer |publisher=[[Los Angeles Times]] |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |url-status=live}} {{Open access}}</ref> It was released in a two-disc [[DVD]] set on August 28, 2001.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hettrick |first=Scott |date=May 21, 2001 |title=Par's 'Forrest' branches out |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |url=https://variety.com/2001/film/news/par-s-forrest-branches-out-1117799811/ |access-date=April 8, 2023}}</ref> Special features included director and producer commentaries, production featurettes, and screen tests.<ref name="SpecialFeatures">{{cite news|last=Lowman|first=Rob|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=LA&p_theme=la&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EE3576468090812&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|format=Fee required|title=Video Enchanted Forrest the Much-beloved "Forrest Gump" Arrives on DVD with Sweetness Intact|work=[[Beacon Journal]]|date=August 28, 2001|access-date=July 2, 2009|archive-date=October 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181009052656/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=LA&p_theme=la&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EE3576468090812&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D|url-status=live}}</ref> The film was released on [[Blu-ray]] in November 2009.<ref name="BluRayRelease">{{cite news |last=Schweiger |first=Arlen |url=http://www.electronichouse.com/article/paramount_saves_top_titles_for_blu_ray_sapphire_treatment/C157 |title=Paramount Saves Top Titles for Blu-ray 'Sapphire' Treatment |work=Electronic House |date=June 23, 2009 |access-date=October 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710181200/http://www.electronichouse.com/article/paramount_saves_top_titles_for_blu_ray_sapphire_treatment/C157 |archive-date=July 10, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Paramount released the film on [[Ultra HD Blu-ray]] in June 2018.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Paramount/Disc_Announcements/paramount-preps-forrest-gump-for-4k-ultra-hd-bluray/41197|title=Paramount Preps 'Forrest Gump' for 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray {{!}} High-Def Digest|website=highdefdigest.com|language=en|access-date=April 3, 2018|archive-date=April 3, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180403234639/https://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Paramount/Disc_Announcements/paramount-preps-forrest-gump-for-4k-ultra-hd-bluray/41197|url-status=live}}</ref> On May 7, 2019, Paramount Pictures released a newly remastered two-disc Blu-ray that contains bonus content.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Blu-ray |first1=Webmaster |title=Forrest Gump 25th Anniversary |url=https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Forrest-Gump-Blu-ray/238653/ |website=Blu-ray.com |access-date=November 7, 2019 |archive-date=November 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191107220253/https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Forrest-Gump-Blu-ray/238653/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Accolades ===
{{Main|List of accolades received by Forrest Gump|l1=List of accolades received by ''Forrest Gump''}}

''Forrest Gump'' won [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]], [[Best Actor in a Leading Role]] (Hanks had won the previous year for [[Philadelphia (film)|''Philadelphia'']]), [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]], [[Academy Award for Best Visual Effects|Best Visual Effects]], [[Academy Award for Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay)|Best Adapted Screenplay]], and [[Academy Award for Best Film Editing|Best Film Editing]] at the [[67th Academy Awards]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-backstage-improv-adds/123755063/ |title=Backstage improv adds life to Oscars |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230429205610/https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-backstage-improv-adds/123755063/ |date=March 29, 1995 |access-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-date=April 29, 2023 |page=60 |publisher=[[Detroit Free Press]] |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |url-status=live}} {{Open access}}</ref> The film was nominated for seven [[52nd Golden Globe Awards|Golden Globe Awards]], winning three of them: [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama|Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama]], [[Golden Globe Award for Best Director|Best Director – Motion Picture]], and [[Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama|Best Motion Picture – Drama]]. The film was also nominated for six [[Saturn Awards]] and won two for [[Saturn Award for Best Fantasy Film|Best Fantasy Film]] and [[Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor (Film)]].

In addition to the film's multiple awards and nominations, it has also been recognized by the [[American Film Institute]] on several of its lists. The film ranks 37th on ''[[AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers|100 Years...100 Cheers]]'', 71st on ''[[AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies|100 Years...100 Movies]]'', and 76th on ''[[AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)|100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)]]''. In addition, the quote "Mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get," was ranked 40th on ''[[100 Years...100 Movie Quotes]]''.<ref name="AFILists">{{cite web|url=http://connect.afi.com/site/PageServer?pagename=100YearsList|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716070826/http://connect.afi.com/site/PageServer?pagename=100YearsList |archive-date=July 16, 2011|title=AFI's 100 Years... The Complete Lists|publisher=[[American Film Institute]]|access-date=July 2, 2009}}</ref> The film also ranked at number 61 on ''[[Empire (film magazine)|Empire]]''{{'}}s list of the 100 Greatest Movies of All Time.<ref>{{cite web|title=Empire's 100 Greatest Movies Of All Time|url=https://empireonline.com/500/51.asp|work=Empire|access-date=November 16, 2013|author=Braund, Simon|display-authors=etal|archive-date=September 27, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927023434/http://www.empireonline.com/500/51.asp|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In December 2011, ''Forrest Gump'' was selected for preservation in the [[Library of Congress]]' [[National Film Registry]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.accessatlanta.com/atlanta-movies/forrest-gump-hannibal-lecter-1277319.html?cxntlid=thbz_hm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111160501/http://www.accessatlanta.com/atlanta-movies/forrest-gump-hannibal-lecter-1277319.html?cxntlid=thbz_hm |archive-date=January 11, 2012|title=Forrest Gump, Hannibal Lecter join film registry|author=Nuckols, Ben|newspaper=Associated Press|publisher=Cox Newspapers|date=December 28, 2011|access-date=December 28, 2011}}</ref> The Registry said that the film was "honored for its technological innovations (the digital insertion of Gump seamlessly into vintage archival [[footage]]), its resonance within the culture that has elevated Gump (and what he represents in terms of American innocence) to the status of folk hero, and its attempt to engage both playfully and seriously with contentious aspects of the era's traumatic history."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2011/11-240.html|title=2011 National Film Registry More Than a Box of Chocolates|publisher=Library of Congress|date=December 28, 2011|access-date=December 28, 2011|archive-date=July 4, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140704135038/http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2011/11-240.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

'''[[American Film Institute]] lists'''
* [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies]] – #71
* [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes]]:
** "Mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get." – #40
* [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers]] – #37
* [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)]] – #76

== Symbolism ==
<!-- NO ORIGINAL RESEARCH. PUBLISHED CRITIQUES ONLY -->

=== Feather ===

{{Quote box |width=30em|bgcolor=#c6dbf7|quote="I don't want to sound like a bad version of 'the child within'. But the childlike innocence of Forrest Gump is what we all once had. It's an emotional journey. You laugh and cry. It does what movies are supposed to do: make you feel alive."|source=—producer [[Wendy Finerman]]<ref name="WorldTime" />}}

Various interpretations have been suggested for the feather present at the opening and conclusion of the film. Sarah Lyall of ''The New York Times'' noted several suggestions made about the feather: "Does the white feather symbolize ''[[The Unbearable Lightness of Being]]''? Forrest Gump's impaired intellect? The randomness of experience?"<ref name="LyallFeather">{{cite news |last=Lyall |first=Sarah |title=It's 'Forrest Gump' vs. Harrumph |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/31/weekinreview/it-s-forrest-gump-vs-harrumph.html |work=The New York Times |date=July 31, 1994 |access-date=October 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110801025155/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/31/weekinreview/it-s-forrest-gump-vs-harrumph.html |archive-date=August 1, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Hanks interpreted the feather as: "Our destiny is only defined by how we deal with the chance elements to our life and that's kind of the embodiment of the feather as it comes in. Here is this thing that can land anywhere and that it lands at your feet. It has theological implications that are really huge."<ref name="DVDEyes3">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Through the eyes of Forrest Gump)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|time=23:27|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref> Sally Field compared the feather to fate, saying: "It blows in the wind and just touches down here or there. Was it planned or was it just perchance?"<ref name="DVDEyes4">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Through the eyes of Forrest Gump)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|time=23:57|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref> Visual effects supervisor Ken Ralston compared the feather to an abstract painting: "It can mean so many things to so many different people."<ref name="DVDEyes5">{{cite video|title=Forrest Gump-(Through the eyes of Forrest Gump)|medium=DVD|publisher=[[Paramount Pictures]]|time=26:29|date=August 28, 2001}}</ref>

=== Political interpretations ===

Hanks states that "the film is non-political and thus non-judgmental".<ref name="WorldTime" /> Nevertheless, CNN's ''[[Crossfire (U.S. TV program)|Crossfire]]'' debated in 1994 whether the film promoted conservative values or was an indictment of the [[counterculture of the 1960s]]. Thomas Byers called it "an aggressively conservative film" in a ''Modern Fiction Studies'' article.<ref name="ByersAggCon">{{cite journal|last=Byers|first=Thomas B.|title=History Re-Membered: Forrest Gump, Postfeminist Masculinity, and the Burial of the Counterculture|journal=Modern Fiction Studies|pages=419–444|volume=42|issue=2|year=1996|doi=10.1353/mfs.1995.0102|s2cid=161822250}}</ref>

{{Quote box |width=30em|bgcolor=#c6dbf7|quote=All over the political map, people have been calling Forrest their own. But, ''Forrest Gump'' isn't about politics or conservative values. It's about humanity, it's about respect, tolerance and unconditional love.|source=—producer [[Steve Tisch]]<ref name="ByersAggCon" />}}
It has been noted that while Gump follows a very conservative lifestyle, Jenny's life is full of countercultural embrace, complete with drug use, promiscuity, and antiwar rallies, and that their eventual marriage might be a kind of reconciliation.<ref name="EbertReview" /> Jennifer Hyland Wang argues in a ''Cinema Journal'' article that Jenny's death to an unnamed virus "symbolizes the death of liberal America and the death of the protests that defined a decade" in the 1960s. She also notes that the film's screenwriter, [[Eric Roth]], developed the screenplay from the novel and transferred to Jenny "all of Gump's flaws and most of the excesses committed by Americans in the 1960s and 1970s".<ref name="WangStruggle" />

Other commentators believe the film forecast the 1994 [[Republican Revolution]] and used the image of Forrest Gump to promote movement leader [[Newt Gingrich]]'s traditional, conservative values. Jennifer Hyland Wang observes that the film idealizes the 1950s, as made evident by the lack of "Whites Only"-signs in Gump's Southern childhood, and envisions the 1960s as a period of social conflict and confusion. She argues that this sharp contrast between the decades criticizes the counterculture values and reaffirms conservatism.<ref name="WangStruggle"/> Wang argues that the film was used by Republican politicians to illustrate a "traditional version of recent history" to gear voters toward their ideology for the congressional elections.<ref name="WangStruggle" /> Presidential candidate [[Bob Dole]] stated that the film's message was "no matter how great the adversity, the American Dream is within everybody's reach".<ref name="WangStruggle" />

In 1995, ''[[National Review]]'' included ''Forrest Gump'' in its list of the "Best 100 Conservative Movies" of all time,<ref name="100ConMov">{{cite news |last=Quillen |first=Ed |date=May 7, 1995 |title=Why are modern conservatives so enchanted with Forrest Gump? |work=[[The Denver Post]]}}</ref> and ranked it number four on its "25 Best Conservative Movies of the Last 25 Years" list.<ref name="NRRanks2">{{cite news |last= |first= |date=February 23, 2009 |title=The Best Conservative Movies |work=[[National Review]] |url=https://www.nationalreview.com/magazine/2009/02/23/best-conservative-movies/ |url-status=dead |access-date=1 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180823083538/https://www.nationalreview.com/magazine/2009/02/23/best-conservative-movies/ |archive-date=August 23, 2018}}</ref> ''National Review''<nowiki/>'s John Miller wrote that "Tom Hanks plays the title-character, an amiable dunce who is far too smart to embrace the lethal values of the 1960s. The love of his life, wonderfully played by Robin Wright Penn, chooses a different path; she becomes a drug-addled hippie, with disastrous results."<ref name="NRRanks">{{cite news |last=Miller |first=John J. |date=February 23, 2009 |title=The Best Conservative Movies |work=[[National Review]] |url=http://nrd.nationalreview.com/article/?q=YWQ4MDlhMWRkZDQ5YmViMDM1Yzc0MTE3ZTllY2E3MGM= |url-status=dead |access-date=October 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101026032717/http://nrd.nationalreview.com/article/?q=YWQ4MDlhMWRkZDQ5YmViMDM1Yzc0MTE3ZTllY2E3MGM%3D |archive-date=October 26, 2010}}</ref>

Professor James Burton at [[Salisbury University]] argues that conservatives claimed ''Forrest Gump'' as their own due less to the content of the film and more to the historical and cultural context of 1994. Burton claims that the film's content and advertising campaign were affected by the cultural climate of the 1990s, which emphasized [[family values]] and American values, epitomized in the book ''[[Hollywood vs. America]]''. He claims that this climate influenced the apolitical nature of the film, which allowed many different political interpretations.<ref name="Burton September 2007">{{cite thesis|last=Burton|first=James Amos|title=Film, History and Cultural Memory: Cinematic Representations of Vietnam-Era America During the Culture Wars, 1987–1995|type=PhD thesis|date=September 2007|url=https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/10493/|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730123929/https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/10493/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Some commentators see the conservative readings of ''Forrest Gump'' as indicating the death of irony in American culture. Vivian Sobchack notes that the film's humor and irony rely on the assumption of the audience's historical knowledge.<ref name="Burton September 2007" />

==Soundtrack==
{{Main|Forrest Gump: The Soundtrack|l1=''Forrest Gump: The Soundtrack''|Forrest Gump – Original Motion Picture Score|l2=''Forrest Gump – Original Motion Picture Score''}}

The soundtrack, featuring 32 songs from the film, was released on July 6, 1994. With the exception of a lengthy suite of themes from [[Alan Silvestri]]'s original score, all the songs are previously released. Among the artists featured in the film are [[Elvis Presley]], [[Bob Dylan]], [[Hank Williams]], [[Creedence Clearwater Revival]], [[Aretha Franklin]], [[Lynyrd Skynyrd]], [[Three Dog Night]], [[The Byrds]], [[The Beach Boys]], [[The Jimi Hendrix Experience]], [[The Doors]], [[Canned Heat]], [[Harry Nilsson]], [[The Mamas & the Papas]], [[The Doobie Brothers]], [[Simon & Garfunkel]], [[Bob Seger]], [[Randy Newman]], [[Willie Nelson]], [[Fleetwood Mac]], [[KC & The Sunshine Band]], and [[Buffalo Springfield]]. Reflecting on compiling the soundtrack, music producer Joel Sill stated "We wanted to have very recognizable material that would pinpoint time periods, yet we didn't want to interfere with what was happening cinematically."<ref name="SongMood">{{cite news|last=Rice|first=Lynette|title=Songs Set the Mood for 'Gump'|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SzcTAAAAIBAJ&pg=5648,4299465|work=[[Gainesville Sun]]|date=August 14, 1994|access-date=July 3, 2009}}{{Dead link|date=March 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> The film and the two-disc album have a variety of music from the 1950s to the 1980s performed by American artists. According to Sill, Zemeckis requested this because he thought that American music was the only kind of music Forrest would buy, further stating "All the material in there is American. Bob (Zemeckis) felt strongly about it. He felt that Forrest wouldn't buy anything but American."<ref name="SongMood" />

The soundtrack reached a peak of number 2 on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' album chart]].<ref name="SongMood" /> The soundtrack went on to sell twelve&nbsp;million copies, and is one of the top selling albums in the US.<ref name="AlbumSell">{{cite web|url=https://www.riaa.com/gp/bestsellers/topalbums.asp |title=Top Albums at the Recording Industry Association of America|publisher=[[Recording Industry Association of America]]|access-date=July 1, 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20040619214153/http://www.riaa.com/gp/bestsellers/topalbums.asp |archive-date = June 19, 2004}}</ref> The Oscar-nominated [[Film score|score]] for the film was composed and conducted by [[Alan Silvestri]] and released on August 2, 1994.

== Adaptations ==

=== Novel-sequel ===
{{Main|Gump and Co.|l1=''Gump and Co.''}}

The screenplay for the sequel was written by [[Eric Roth]] in 2001. It is based on the original novel's sequel, ''[[Gump and Co.]]'', written by Winston Groom in 1995. Roth's script begins with Forrest sitting on a bench waiting for his son to return from school. After the [[September 11 attacks]], Roth, Zemeckis, and Hanks decided the story was no longer "relevant."<ref name="911Relevant">{{cite news |last=Sciretta |first=Peter |title=9/11 Killed the Forrest Gump Sequel |publisher=/Film |date=December 7, 2008 |url=https://slashfilm.com/2008/12/07/911-killed-the-forrest-gump-sequel/ |access-date=October 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100109162417/http://www.slashfilm.com/2008/12/07/911-killed-the-forrest-gump-sequel/ |archive-date=January 9, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In March 2007, however, it was reported Paramount producers took another look at the screenplay.<ref name="2007Sequel"/>

On the first page of the sequel novel, Forrest Gump tells readers "Don't never let nobody make a movie of your life's story," and "Whether they get it right or wrong, it doesn't matter."<ref name="GumpCo">{{cite book|last=Groom|first=Winston|title=Gump & Co.|publisher=[[Pocket Books]]|year=1996|page=[https://archive.org/details/gumpco00wins_0/page/1 1]|isbn=978-0-671-52264-3|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/gumpco00wins_0/page/1}}</ref> The first chapter of the book suggests the real-life events surrounding the film have been incorporated into Forrest's storyline, and that Forrest got a lot of media attention as a result of the film.<ref name="MoviesBook" /> During the course of the sequel novel, Gump runs into Tom Hanks and at the end of the novel in the film's release, includes Gump going on ''[[Late Show with David Letterman|The David Letterman Show]]'' and attending the [[Academy Awards]].

=== Indian remake ===
{{Main|Laal Singh Chaddha|l1=''Laal Singh Chaddha''}}

The [[Indian film]] ''[[Laal Singh Chaddha]]'', released in August 2022 and starring [[Aamir Khan]] and [[Kareena Kapoor]] in the title role, is an authorized remake of ''Forrest Gump'', set in India between the late 1970s and the 2010s. The film was directed by [[Advait Chandan]] and produced by Aamir Khan Productions, [[Viacom18 Studios]] and [[Paramount Pictures]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.filmfare.com/news/bollywood/aamir-khans-laal-singh-chaddha-to-have-a-special-screening-for-tom-hanks-53012.html |title=Aamir Khan's Laal Singh Chaddha to have a special screening for Tom Hanks|publisher=[[Filmfare]]|date=April 4, 2022|access-date=April 4, 2022}}</ref>

=== Fake sequel trailers ===
Following the advent of AI video editing, several fake trailers were created and gained attention, some featuring an older Tom Hanks costarring with actors like [[Tom Holland]] or [[Timothée Chalamet]].<ref name="NME">{{Cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/news/film/forrest-gump-fan-made-trailer-imagines-timothee-chalamet-in-the-lead-3811900|title='Forrest Gump' fan-made trailer imagines Timothée Chalamet in the lead|first=Damian|last=Jones|work=NME|date=November 12, 2024}}</ref> Hanks himself has said that he is glad that a sequel was never made, given the completeness of the original film.<ref name="NME"/>

==See also==

* [[Bubba Gump Shrimp Company]], a real American restaurant chain based on the film
* [[List of American football films]]
* [[List of films about the sport of athletics]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikiquote}}
{{wikivoyage|Forrest Gump tour}}

* {{official website}}
* {{IMDb title|0109830|Forrest Gump}}
* {{TCMDb title|75434|Forrest Gump}}
* {{mojo title|forrestgump|Forrest Gump}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|forrest_gump|Forrest Gump}}
* [https://www.paramountmovies.com/movies/forrest-gump Paramount Movies – ''Forrest Gump'']

{{Forrest Gump}}
{{Robert Zemeckis}}
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| title = [[List of accolades received by Forrest Gump|Awards for ''Forrest Gump'']]
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{{AcademyAwardBestPicture 1981–2000}}
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{{GoldenGlobeBestMotionPictureDrama 1981–2000}}
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