There's No Way You Can Match The Tom To Their Movie
- by Dylan Jacob
- – on
- in Movies and TV
Have you noticed there's a lot of people out there named Tom? Thomas is one of those old-timey names, like Jonathan or Alexander or Kate. It speaks of royalty...or something like that. When names have been around for hundreds of years, they're bound to keep being used down the line.
Today, you're going to look at 30 movies which all starred Toms - Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, etc. - and tell us which Tom was either in the starring role or the role we're describing. Because using a picture of Tom in said role would be too obvious, we're going to be creative with some pictures. If this was a quiz about actors named Chris, for example, we might use Captain America's shield for Chris Evans and Mjolnir for Chris Hemsworth.
If a character did a voiceover role for a CGI or puppet character that makes the list, we'll just show them. This is the type of quiz where you really need to read the description because there may be hints, tips, or clarifications in there. Also, we should acknowledge that there is a question with only two possible answers, although you'll understand why we did that when the time comes.
Do you think you know your Toms? Let's get to work.
Venom
As the Venom movie is slated to come out later this year and has recently dropped some trailers, let's talk about this movie for a second. Venom as a movie could be really good! It could also be another disappointing showing from Sony. Like Deadpool and the X-Men movies, Venom isn't going to be set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and no one is sure yet if the character will appear in those movies at a later point. Who is set to play Venom?
Spider-Man: Homecoming
Since we're on the topic of Sony, I'm going to try being fairly neutral about Spider-Man: Homecoming although I personally didn't like it. I will say that the actor in question does a great Peter Parker and was even better in The Avengers: Infinity War. Is he a great Spider-Man to this point? That will be determined later on, especially in the next - actually, quiz taker, I don't feel so good. Can someone please answer this question since I don't feel so good?
Top Gun
Like Apple did with their emojis, we're replacing a normal gun with a water pistol because why not? Besides, this still gets the point across of how we're talking about Top Gun, a movie I feel we don't talk about enough. This movie still holds up nearly 30 years later and is a ball to watch. I feel like watching Top Gun again. Does anyone want to join me since I'm feeling better? Maybe it helps that I'm not Spider-Man.
Philadelphia
We did say in the intro that some of these questions would have puns, play-on words, or actual creativity, but we are talking about the 90s movies where someone gets AIDS and everyone fights, yells, and cries for two hours. It's a heartwarming and heartbreaking classic about love, perseverance, and this actor showing some great skills for the entire movie. Yes, we're capable of compliments when we feel those in question are due for one. We have souls, which is why we want you to get this right.
Batman Forever
We probably could have used another version of The Riddler here, but this picture is good enough. You have the iconic Riddler logo around the iconic Batman logo. Batman Forever is one of those "meh" superhero movies that's not quite The Dark Knight, but it's also thankfully not Batman & Robin. And it's not Batman vs. Superman, which divided many fans for betraying the characters. At least we can agree that this actor was pretty solid in Batman Forever. Who was the Riddler?
The Dark Knight Rises
If we're going to include The Riddler on here, we may as well include another Batman movie villain who was played by a Tom. This movie was dark, saw great lines, and sadly ended the Christopher Nolan Batman movies. At least, we call it sadly when the DCEU has been mediocre at best with Wonder Woman being the universe's real saving grace in the eyes of most fans. Let's throw it back to 2012 so you can tell us who this is.
Cast Away
This is a classic 90s movie - oh wait, it came out in 2000 so it's not a 90s movie. Anyway, it's a classic 2000 movie that is great for its focus on characterization and the human element, also known as one of the triggering terms for journalists. Don't talk to journalists about human element or human interest story. Help save journalists like me from going insane like the main character in Cast Away. Who was the man who played Chuck Noland?
Men in Black
Well, I think we all know that Will Smith isn't a Tom, so we can afford to use him in this picture. What we can afford is to say that one of these Toms is the other man in black who uses the badass memory wiping device that I really hope never gets introduced in real life. Too much damage can be done with something that and no one knows - or at least uses - the old Spider-Man proverb. Which Tom is the answer here?
Thor
While Thor is the question, we're looking for who played Loki. Or plays, because we don't know how many more movies that Loki will be in as the Marvel Cinematic Universe seems like it's going to slowly shift more to Spider-Man, Black Panther, and other superhero films. Are the days of the original Avengers narrowed? Probably not for Chris Hemsworth, who has played Thor with such authority since 2011. Who is it that still plays Loki, Thor's adopted younger brother?
Toy Story
Some people may argue that voice acting isn't legitimate acting the way other roles on this list are, but this superstar excelled as Woody in Toy Story and will most likely resume the role in Toy Story 4. I'm part of the fan base that thinks Toy Story 3 was a perfect ending to the series on its own, but we'll see what happens in Toy Story 4. Maybe it'll just be a soft reboot of the first one. Who played Woody?
MIssion: Impossible
This obviously goes for the franchise as a whole, too. But when you think of this actor's line of work, the Mission: Impossible movies are usually near the top of the list. The classics that we can't say because it'd spoil who this is are on there as well, yet Mission: Impossible almost always works its way up into, "Yeah, I loved him in those movies. He kicked major butt." Can you kick major butt by getting this question right?
Major League
Am I the only one who thinks Major League should be soft rebooted for the current day MLB? We could have the top prospect held back because the team wants to save money, the veteran who fights the clubhouse assistant who tries to educate him about advanced metrics, and the 19-year-old manager hired because he can do math. Add in a robot umpire, a player finding dates through Twitter, and pitchers getting hurt from Fortnite and I think this could 100 percent work.
Sully
This movie only came out a couple of years ago, so that should help you. The story of Sully Sullenberger somehow saving an entire plane after birds flew into the wings is still so surreal and the movie, at least in my eyes, was awesome for showing that Sully was just a simple man. He didn't view himself as a hero or a legend. He just did what he thought and knew needed to be done despite the risks. Who played Sully?
Forrest Gump
Get it? It's a box of chocolates like Forrest Gump's mother said life was like. But you do know what's in the box of chocolates: chocolate. So does the surprise analogy really work? I know what they were going for and I do feel like being sarcastic since I've been in a good mood lately. I'm on a diet so I cut candy and sweets out, so answer this question before I start craving chocolate and ruin my diet. No cheating!
Rain Man
Get it? Because this is a man walking in the rain? Eminem once made a song named after this movie where he talked about censorship, dissing Christopher Reeve (and unintentionally releasing it around the time Superman died...), and if football was a homoerotic sport. There's a reason Em disowned his Encore album. But yes, I am listening to this song while I type about Rain Man, which I find to still be a great movie nearly 30 years later. Which Tom played Charlie Babbitt?
Harry Potter
We're looking for the actor who played Draco Malfoy here. It's been a long time since I saw any of the Harry Potter movies - I've only seen one or two, so shame me - but I always did find Harry's lightning bolt scar to be cool. I still think Spider-Pig from The Simpsons did it better. Oh wait, his name by then was Harry Plopper. I don't know where I'm going with all this, so go and answer this.
Kong: Skull Island
Try not to be too freaked out by the giant ape that is screaming in the picture. We promise that he won't be able to break through your screen and get you. This isn't the IMAX 3D theatres where everything pops out of the screen and it can actually get somewhat unnerving in the right situation. I know I'd be quite unnerved if I was in Kong: Skull Island with all of those freaky creatures. What Tom was in this movie?
Inception
Inception actually quite had several Toms in the main roles, so I'm looking for the one that played Eames, who is called a fence but does more forgery than anything else. Reread that closely because we are not looking for the Tom that played Peter Browning, who was Robert Fischer's godfather. At least one of you won't read closely and they'll wind up getting this wrong, ruining their perfect score and making them sad. Don't be that person. Good luck!
High-Rise
Get it? Like a high-rise apartment? This might be one of the tougher questions on here because this movie did so much better overseas than it did in the United States, but it definitely had one of these Toms as a star. Because this is a tougher question, we'll make it slightly easier on you and give a hint. This actor went from living in a place that was like heaven to living with the rich in a high-rise. That helps, right?
The Revenant
If this movie sounds familiar to you for reasons other than it being one of Leonardo Di Caprio's finer productions, yes, this is the movie that people thought featured a bear forcing itself onto a human being for sexual pleasure. It got to the point where Leo had to explicitly say, "I am not raped by a bear in The Revenant." Remember when all Leo did was curse and sneak into rich sections of the Titanic? What Tom joined Leo as a star?
The Polar Express
This movie actually has this Tom in SIX different roles, so hopefully he enjoyed it and got a nice payday out of it. I was seven-years-old when The Polar Express came out and it was the most excited I'd seen people for a Christmas movie yet. We were still a long ways off from the now annual Star Wars movie releasing around Christmas, which it seems won't happen this year because Solo comes out later this month. Who starred here?
Lincoln
While this actor was not responsible for playing Abraham Lincoln, his role as Republican Congressman Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Oh, and Adam Driver was in this movie too as one of Lincoln's telegraph workers. If it had been Hayden Christensen, we could have made some sort of dark joke about Anakin getting to finally free the slaves. Since Anakin was a slave. And Kylo Ren wasn't. Just go answer this.
JFK
And while another question has a Tom who didn't play the president in question, JFK ALSO sees a Tom not play a president. Kennedy isn't even the starring role. It's Jim Garrison, played by Kevin Costner when he was making what felt like two or three blockbuster a year. We did get to see a Tom play Clay Shaw and I would still suggest giving this 1991 movie a watch sometime soon. Oh, and 11. 22. 63. on Hulu with James Franco. That was pretty good too. What's the answer?
Sniper
There are so many Sniper movies to this point that it should be obvious to just go with the lead in these movies. And yes, we used a shot of Call of Duty: World War II (no pun intended) because sniping in this game wasn't too fun. Sniping in Sniper looks so cool, especially with this actor being the one in charge of lining up the shot and pulling the trigger. Which Tom was it that was sniping people here?
The Green Mile
The Green Mile is a disturbing, creepy film that is yet still so awesome. If Frank Darabont had been kept as The Walking Dead's showrunner, maybe that show would still be disturbing and creepy instead of being whatever it is now. That's not an insult to the show, by the way, it's just that the tone and everything is different than what Darabont originally intended in 2010. Who was it that played the lead in The Green Mile, which still holds up 20 years later?
Risky Business
This is another movie I can see getting rebooted in the next few years because it's a popular 80s movie with a lovable cast. It's probably already on a reboot list which also includes The Breakfast Club (which removes smoking for vaping), Fast Times at Ridgemont High Jeff Spicoli gets a Papa John's sponsorship), and the Star Wars original trilogy (Hayley Atwell as Princess Leia? I would actually watch that). Do you know which Tom was the star of Risky Business?
Edge of Winter
This is an independent film that you may not have seen recently, but it is responsible for bringing one of the following two Marvel Cinematic Universe actors into the forefront. We're going to make things easy on you here by putting both Tom Hiddleston and Tom Holland because if you get this right, then you know the actors and not just the characters. If you get it wrong, don't feel bad. We just wanted to include a challenging question for once.
Platoon
We're going all the way back to 1986 for this one, as we discuss Oliver Stone's anti-war film, Platoon. Everyone has different views on war, especially the ones in Vietnam and in the Middle East, so you're not going to get any political commentary here. I do think this is one of those movies best watched when you go in with an open mind. You may not agree with all of the commentary, but at least give the movie a chance. Who's the Tom?
Warrior
No, not like Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors, although this was a sports movie. Warrior was released in 2011 when more of the mainstream public began paying attention to MMA and the rising UFC, which would get major TV deals in the coming years as they fielded stars like Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey. Given how most sports movies seem to follow the same premise that is too lengthy to discuss here, go into this one with an open mind. I think you'll like it.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Context is needed for this part, so here we go. Admiral Ackbar was voiced in earlier movies by Erik Bauersfeld, who died during filming of The Last Jedi. While Ackbar's role in the movie was very short, all Star Wars fans shed a tear when the lovable commander was blown into space and died out there. We're including him because Rian Johson casted a well-known Tom to lend his voice to Ackbar for some brief lines. Which Tom was it?