Tom Hanks to finally explain himself after firing Band of Brothers actor for having ‘dead eyes’

Hanks will address the incident in a podcast hosted by the very actor he dismissed

Tom Hanks will finally explain his reasoning for firing actor Connor Ratliff from a role in Band of Brothers.

Ratfliff claims that Hanks fired him from a small role on the 2001 HBO miniseries after saying he had “dead eyes”.

The actor, who currently stars in The Marvelous Mrs Maisel, was replaced at the last moment, and has been attempting to get to the bottom of Hanks’ reasoning ever since.

The story became the source of a podcast, titled Dead Eyes, which has featured guests including Seth Rogen, Jon Hamm and Hank’s own son, Colin Hanks.

In an unexpected move, Ratfliff has now managed to secure the man himself as a guest for the season three finale.

“I was fully prepared for this to never happen, but I am thrilled that it has,” said Ratliff, who started the podcast in 2019.

“I think for listeners who have been following along, it will be a very satisfying experience. And for new listeners, it’s a Tom Hanks episode, so what’s not to like?”

He continued: “I have been a fan ever since I heard him scream the line ‘I am not a fish’ in Splash, and doing this podcast has only made me a bigger fan, even before he agreed to be a guest.”

Tom Hanks will explain why he fired Connor Ratliff from ‘Band of Brothers’ (Getty Images for Tribeca Film Fe)

The episode will see Hanks talk about the rules of working on a set, share unheard stories from his past and explain why exactly he had Ratfliff fired.

Hanks co-created the war drama Band of Brothers alongside Steven Spielberg after working on the 1999 film Saving Private Ryan. It first aired on 9 September 2001 and became one of the most acclaimed miniseries of all time.

The actor will next be seen playing Colonel Tom Parker in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis.