Run Forest, Run! Behind The Scenes Of Forrest Gump

Forrest Meets Lyndon B. Johnson

Forrest met Lyndon B. Johnson when he received his Medal of Honor. Interestingly, that is the real footage from that moment. Of course, it wasn’t footage obtained by the crew. In fact, it comes from the 1968 ceremony of Sammy L. Davis. Davis, who did receive this prestigious award for his service in Vietnam. Hanks’ face was just slapped onto Davis’ body.

A Mock Of War

Forrest is deployed to the war in Vietnam. The magic of Hollywood achieved this surreal and scary time of the sixties. From the muddy ground to the jungles and the swamps, it’s interesting to know how the crew did it. Well, the Vietnam War scene with Forrest actually took place on a golf course on Fripp Island, just off the coast of South Carolina.

The King Of Rock And Roll

There are some truly notable faces in Forrest Gump. One of them was the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley. It was hard to see who played him. It was actually Kurt Russel, who actually provided Elvis with his signature voice. However, his name is nowhere to be found when the credits roll at the end of the movie. Russel also portrayed Elvis in the 1979 made-for-television movie, Elvis. One other well-known person, who was a civil rights activist, was excluded from the movie.

Perfecting The Southern Accent

One of the key characteristics of the kind-hearted character was his famous accent. Hanks modeled the accent after one of his co-stars in the film, the young Forrest. Even Humphreys would win a Young Artist Award for his role.