John Travolta turned down the leading role in Forrest Gump and then lost the Oscar to Tom Hanks: does he regret it?

Looking back on time, it is hard to imagine anyone other than Tom Hanks sitting on the park bench and offering chocolates to strangers in the iconic opening scene of Forrest Gump.

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But John Travolta has said the main role on Forrest Gump was offered to him first, and he said no. Other actors were also considered to play Forrest, including Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, and Sean Penn, according to Far Out Magazine.

The movie Travolta chose instead of Forrest Gump

By the early 1990s, Travolta needed a hit movie. After his success in the 1970s with Saturday Night Fever and Grease, he spent much of the 1980s in movies that failed with critics and audiences.

When Forrest Gump’s offer came, Travolta had another option on the table: a mid-budget film by a young director named Quentin Tarantino. The movie was Pulp Fiction, and the role was the iconic Vincent Vega.

Travolta’s decision was a hit and boosted his career. Pulp Fiction turned him into one of the most in-demand stars of the 1990s and led to movies such as Get Shorty and Face/Off.

The Oscar night twist

Both films were released in 1994, and both competed at the Academy Awards in March 1995. Travolta earned a Best Actor nomination for Pulp Fiction, his first in 17 years.

But the winner in his category was Tom Hanks for the role Travolta had turned down. Forrest Gump won six Oscars, including Best Picture, and earned about $678 million worldwide. Pulp Fiction won one award, for Best Original Screenplay.

Does Travolta regret turning down Forrest Gump?

Travolta has said he doesn’t regret his decision. When he was asked about it by MTV in 2007, he answered, “No, because if I didn’t do something Tom Hanks did, then I did something else that was equally interesting or fun... But I feel good about some I gave up because other careers were created.”

Forrest Gump wasn’t the only time their paths crossed. Travolta has said he also turned down the lead role in Splash (1984), which became one of Hanks’ first big hits. In a conversation with Kevin Hart, Travolta said the character had been written for him.

Hanks, meanwhile, reportedly accepted Forrest Gump about an hour and a half after reading the script.