Tom Hanks Remembers Late Astronaut James Lovell, Who He Played in Apollo 13

Tom Hanks is honoring astronaut James Lovell, who died on Thursday, Aug. 7 at age 97. Lovell’s daughter-in-law confirmed the news to The New York Times.

Hanks, 69, played Lovell in the 1995 movie Apollo 13. That Ron Howard-directed docudrama retold the real-life 1970 lunar mission that Lovell commanded which endured critical failures before returning safely to Earth.

“There are people who dare, who dream, and who lead others to the places we would not go on our own,” said the Oscar-winning actor in a statement shared on Instagram. “Jim Lovell, who for a long while had gone farther into space and for longer than any other person of our planet, was that kind of guy.”

Hanks continued, “His many voyages around Earth and on to so-very-close to the moon were not made for riches or celebrity, but because such challenges as those are what fuels the course of being alive — and who better than Jim Lovell to make those voyages.”

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The actor concluded, “On this night of a full moon, he passes on — to the heavens, to the cosmos, to the stars. God speed you, on this next voyage, Jim Lovell.”

Ron Howard, who directed Apollo 13, also shared a tribute for Lovell on Instagram. The filmmaker shared a carousel of photos and clips of the astronaut, as well as side-by-side photos from real life and the film, and wrote, “RIP #CommanderLovell. Navy test pilot, Gemini 7, Gemini 12, Apollo 8 and, of course, Apollo 13.”

Howard added, “Simply knowing Jim has been a tremendous honor. His combination of intellect, courage and commitment to duty made him one of the most remarkable individuals I’ve ever met. His support of our movie-making efforts inspired authenticity and elevated our process in so many ways.
Thank you, sir, for your service to our country and to humankind.”

Known as Jim, the Cleveland, Ohio-born NASA commander and former Navy test pilot flew four space missions. In 2010, he described the Apollo 13 mission as a “successful failure” in an interview with Reuters. Its outcome was “a great success in the ability of people to take an almost-certain catastrophe and turn it into a successful recovery.”

In 2023, Hanks narrated The Moonwalkers: A Journey With Tom Hanks, an immersive exhibit at London’s Lightroom. At the time, he told The Telegraph that he’d love to participate in a lunar mission. “I would like to be the guy in charge of serving food and making jokes to and from the moon,” he quipped. “If there was room, I would be the guy that cleans up, makes jokes, tells stories and keeps everybody entertained.”

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This year, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Apollo 13, the movie will be re-released in IMAX theaters starting Sept. 19. The movie was adapted by William Broyles Jr. and Al Reinert from Lost Moon, the 1994 non-fiction book by Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger. The Oscar-winning movie costarred Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, Ed Harris and Kathleen Quinlan.

Source People.com