Why Tom Hanks turned down 'When Harry Met Sally'

He didn't have what she was having.

Rita Wilson says Tom Hanks turned down When Harry Met Sally because he was too happily divorced

Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan nearly had a classic-rom-com trifecta.

Tom Hanks arrives or the New York premiere of "Asteroid City" at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center n New York City on June 13, 2023. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images); WHEN HARRY MET SALLY..., Billy Crystal, 1989, (c) Columbia/courtesy Everett Collection Tom Hanks (left) and Billy Crystal in 'When Harry Met Sally' | Credit: ANGELA WEISS/AFP/Getty; Columbia/Everett

In an appearance on iHeart Podcast's Table for Two With Bruce Bozzi, Wilson says Hanks just couldn't relate to the character of Harry Burns, which ultimately went to Billy Crystal.

"People probably don't know this, but Tom was offered When Harry Met Sally and he turned it down because he was going through a divorce and he was very happy to be not married," Wilson told Bozzi. "And so he could not understand that a person going through a divorce would have anything other than just like, 'I'm so happy.'"

Hanks divorced his first wife Samantha Lewes in 1987 and married Wilson in 1988. Hanks' marital status notwithstanding, director Reiner considered a number of actors for the Harry role before settling on Crystal, including Albert Brooks, Richard Dreyfuss, and Michael Keaton, while Molly Ringwald was considered for Sally Albright.

"But Meg and Billy hit it off right away," Reiner told The Daily Beast on occasion of the film's 25th anniversary in 2014.

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.