A widower in Seattle, a lonely woman in Baltimore, and a radio call that brings them together — Tom Hanks makes Sleepless in Seattle the most romantic film of its decade.
Released in 1993, Sleepless in Seattle stars Hanks as Sam Baldwin, a widower whose young son calls a radio phone-in show to find him a new wife. Annie Reed, played by Meg Ryan, hears the call and becomes convinced that Sam is the man she is meant to meet.
Hanks and Ryan are barely in the same scene for most of the film, yet their chemistry carries it. Hanks plays Sam as decent, grieving and gently funny, and the film’s famous ending on the Empire State Building works because we have come to care about both of them.
It is a signature romantic role: Hanks at his most charming, proving that a love story can be built on character, not just coincidence.