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Tom Hanks Will Host ‘Saturday Night Live’ In October: How Many Times Has The Oscar Winner Hosted SNL?

By Glenn Hadley
Published on: 15:59 PST, Oct 9, 2016

Tom Hanks is coming back to Saturday Night Live!

According to Variety, the two-time Oscar winner is set to return to the popular studio in New York City to host the live sketch television show yet again later this month.

Through his acting career, Tom Hanks has won his two Oscars for dramatic acting roles that were definitely not known for being comedic at all.

In Philadelphia, he starred alongside Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington as a terminated attorney fighting in court while fighting for his life. In Forrest Gump, Tom Hanks starred as the titular character who was known for being laughed at more throughout his life.

However, Hanks has been able to use his ventures on Saturday Night Live to show off his funny side – reminding movie fans that Hanks overall resume of films and acting roles is checkered with hilarious comedic roles, saddening dramatic roles, and the well-written roles that found a creative way to blend both of those worlds together in one film.

Has Tom Hanks hosted Saturday Night Live in the past? Of course, he has! Any true, longtime fan of SNL (or even a loyal fan of Tom Hanks himself) would know that the Sully actor has definitely made his mark on the Saturday Night Live stage quite a few times over the years.

Variety states that when Tom Hanks walks out onto the Saturday Night Live stage on October 22, it will mark the actor’s ninth time as the show’s host.

Tom Hanks’ first SNL hosting gig actually occurred over 30 years ago – December 14, 1985. In less than five years, Hanks’ rising popularity and brilliant comic timing landed him in the Saturday Night Live Five-Timers club – joining an elite list of celebrities that a relatively small number of people have been able to join since the show first aired back in 1975.

According to Cinema Blend, the Five-Timers Club was actually invented by Tom Hanks himself.

“The Five-Timers Club started with Tom Hanks. It was his idea, actually, that there was this private club where only the people who had hosted five times just met up and spent time.”

Hanks will be joined on October 22 by musical guest Lady Gaga – another fan favorite within the world of Saturday Night Live performances and hilarious sketches.

Tom Hanks has not returned to Saturday Night Live as a host in more than 10 years; his most recent appearance was in May of 2006. Therefore, Tom will have to adapt to working with a mostly new cast in comparison to the numerous familiar faces that have exited the SNL cast in the years since he last appeared on the show. Many fans and critics of the show would agree that the overall tone and feel of the show has changed drastically over the past 10 years as well.

However, with Tom Hanks’ award-winning versatility as an actor and his longtime career of successfully captivating his audience, his highly-anticipated return to Saturday Night Live could very well end up being one of the best episodes of the season.

[Featured Image by Ron Adar/Shutterstock]

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