Tom Hanks stopped using Twitter because it felt like "an empty exercise".
The Saving Private Ryan actor used to be a regular presence on Twitter and was best known for sharing pictures of lost items he'd found in the street. However, while his account is still active, he hasn't tweeted since May 2020.
Speaking to The New York Times Magazine, Hanks explained that it felt pointless as he didn't need any more publicity or exposure.
"I stopped posting because, number one, I thought it was an empty exercise. I have enough attention on me," he said, before explaining that receiving insults from trolls in the replies also put him off tweeting.
"But also, I’d post something goofy like, 'Here’s a pair of shoes I saw in the middle of the street,' and the third comment would be, 'F**k you, Hanks.' I don’t know if I want to give that guy the forum. If the third comment is 'F**k you, you Obama-loving communist,' it’s like, I don’t need to do that," the 66-year-old added.
The Oscar-winning actor addressed his absence from Twitter after discussing the political divide in America and noting that social media has led to the truth having "no currency".
"That is only going to be altered when enough people say, 'F**k that, I’m not going to pay any attention to social media ever again,'" he stated.
Hanks took a break from Instagram in 2020 too, but he resumed posting in June. He has disabled the comments on his posts so nobody can leave a message.