Tom Hanks Says It's 'Good to Look Young Again' in Here — But He'd 'Rather Be as Old as I Am' (Exclusive)

Tom Hanks is reflecting on the “kooky” process of digital de-aging in his new movie, Here. 

“It's good to look young again,” he tells PEOPLE on the red carpet of the movie's world premiere at AFI Fest in Los Angeles on Friday, Oct. 25. But, adds Hanks, 68, “it's not great to be young again."

Here (in theaters Nov. 1), which reunites the two-time Oscar winner with Forrest Gump director Robert Zemeckis and costar Robin Wright, spans decades in its depiction of a single plot of land. Hanks and Wright, 58, play Richard and Margaret Young in a wide array of ages as the story chronicles their home life. 

“It was kooky,” quips Hanks. “That was like the gimmicky kind of aspect of it, because you could do that with regular makeup if you want to do that. But because we have this other super fast-filter computer that happened right then and there, we don't have to wait for the post-production process to view [ourselves as young].”

But while seeing himself de-aged was “great,” he adds, “look, I'm 68. The much more difficult part that was both physical and spiritual emotionally is when Richard and Margaret are 35 and 42 — when the aging process just begins to kick in and you no longer are able to spring up off a couch. And you're not yet to a place where life slows down completely.”

So when it comes to playing different ages, Hanks’ takeaway was simple: “I'd rather be as old as I am.”

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Co-written by Eric Roth and Zemeckis, 72, Here costars Paul Bettany and Kelly Reilly and is adapted from Richard McGuire's comic set in one room over a number of years.

"I've always been attracted to technology that helps me to tell a story," Zemeckis said in a January 2023 statement about the movie’s use of Metaphysic, a digital effects company famous for its @DeepTomCruise accounts on social media. "With Here, the film simply wouldn't work without our actors seamlessly transforming into younger versions of themselves. Metaphysic's AI tools do exactly that, in ways that were previously impossible!"

Following its AFI Fest premiere, Here is in theaters Nov. 1.