Big Forrest, Little Forrest
One of the reasons why we all fell in love with Tom Hanks’s portrayal of Forrest Gump was because of his distinct Alabama accent. Hanks doesn’t have a natural southern accent, so it took effort and time. And practice makes perfect. But it also helped him to use someone’s voice for inspiration. Hanks modeled the accent after one of his costars, Michael Conner Humphreys, who played the young version Forrest in the movie.
Source: playbuzz.com
Humphreys went on to earn praise for his acting, having won a Young Artist Award.
Alongside his costars Hanna Hall and Haley Joel Osment, Humphreys received a nomination at the 16th Youth in Film Awards. Other than high school productions and an uncredited role in the 2003 TV adaptation of A Painted House, Humphreys didn’t pursue a further career in acting.