Tom Hanks is an American icon who has been one of Hollywood's top actors for nearly 40 years. Although he is affectionately known as "America's Dad," he does not only play wholesome, upbeat roles. Hanks has found success in raunchy comedies, dark dramas, and blockbuster action thrillers, always finding the core of humanity in his characters.

Hanks' best work highlights the humanity of his characters, whether they are real people or animated toys. Hanks, who has won every accolade he can muster, including six Academy Award nominations, remains down-to-earth, playing relatable and often understated characters. Whether the films surrounding him are naturalistic or fantastical, he always seems authentic. Most of his appearances are worth seeing, but here are the seven best Tom Hanks movies you can stream right now.

Hanks plays another real-life hero in this fascinating epic drama about a group of astronauts trying to return to Earth after their spaceship malfunctions. Hanks plays Jim Lovell, the competent and calm leader of the 1970 NASA mission. Director Ron Howard carefully sets up the characters and the technical details so that the audience understands exactly what is at stake when things go wrong.

Even if you know the real-life ending, "Apollo 13" keeps the audience on the edge of their seats, thanks to the compelling performances of Hanks, Kevin Bacon, and Bill Paxton as the astronauts, and Ed Harris and Gary Sinise as the ground crew trying to bring them home. It is populist entertainment at its best.

Rent/Buy on Amazon or Apple

Hanks is able to create memorable characters with long-lasting cultural impact with his voice alone. He is instantly recognizable as the voice of Woody the cowboy doll in Pixar's animated film "Toy Story," but "Toy Story 2" is the best of the four films in the series. Toy Story 2" depicts the transition from rivalry to friendship between Woody and space explorer action figure Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen).

When Woody is kidnapped by a greedy toy collector, his fellow toys take action to save him. Brilliantly animated, "Toy Story 2" is both a fun and exciting adventure story and a meditation on death. Hanks, who plays Woody, utters a clichéd catchphrase and goes through an existential crisis. Like his best live-action work, it is a multilayered performance.

See on Disney Plus

Hanks has collaborated with Steven Spielberg on five films, but none is as jarring as this Oscar-winning World War II drama. From its harrowing opening scene depicting the assault on Omaha Beach in Normandy, "Private Ryan" immediately draws the audience into the chaos of the battlefield and keeps them engaged for nearly three hours.

Hanks plays the commander of the battalion assigned to rescue the protagonist, played by Matt Damon. Private Ryan raises questions about the cost of sending unprepared civilians into battle and the responsibility of those who survive. Hanks brings a weary determination to the role that forms the moral and emotional center of the film.

Watch on Netflix

Before becoming a major dramatic actor, Hanks began his career in light-hearted comedies like Penny Marshall's hilarious film about a 12-year-old boy turned adult. After making a wish on a carnival fortune-telling machine, young Josh Baskin awakens in the body of an adult man (Hanks).

Josh's wide-eyed child's perspective comes in handy when he gets a job at a toy company, impressing his boss (Robert Loggia) and catching the eye of a female colleague (Elizabeth Perkins). Hanks perfectly balances the innocence of childhood with a bit of mischief as Josh takes advantage of his newfound freedom. There is just the right amount of sadness in both the acting and the film without getting in the way of the goofy humor.

See on Disney Plus

Hanks has gone to extraordinary lengths to play Chuck Noland, a stranded FedEx employee who must survive on a deserted island after surviving a plane crash in the middle of the ocean. Director Robert Zemeckis had time to make one other movie while Hanks slimmed down to play the undernourished Chuck in a scene later in the film. Hanks' Oscar-nominated performance captures the cost of years of impoverishment on an isolated island.

"Cast Away" also has humor in its relationship with the volleyball that Chuck personifies and names Wilson. Hanks shows fortitude even when Chuck is at his most desperate, and Cast Away is a story of finding hope in the darkest of times. Hanks is the only person on screen for most of the film, and he alone carries the story.

Rent/buy on Amazon or Apple

Hanks and Meg Ryan have successfully teamed up for two mainstream romantic comedies ("Sleepless in Seattle" and "You Got Mail"), but it is screenwriter John Patrick This delightfully offbeat film, directed by Shanley, is the duo's best work yet. Ryan plays three different roles as the love interest of Joe Banks, played by Hanks, a nervous advertising manager at a dystopian industrial facility.

Joe is diagnosed with a rare, painless but fatal disease and decides to leave in glory by accepting an offer to become a human sacrifice on a remote island. Along the way, he encounters three of Ryan's characters, each of whom energizes him in their own way. It is a stylized, silly, and strangely profound story of a man who finds the meaning of life by facing the world's most ridiculous death.

Watch on Tubi (ads available, free)

Hanks has played many real-life heroes, but this film, based on the true story of a container ship captain taken hostage by Somali pirates, focuses on the quiet heroism of the title character. Captain Phillips, played by Hanks, is pragmatic and seemingly unflappable, but he risks his own life to protect his crew from the dangerous men who board the ship. He stands up to the pirate leader (Barkhad Abdi) and remains unwavering despite the increasingly dire situation.

Director Paul Greengrass puts the audience on the same page as Phillips, delivering a suspenseful and gripping film that builds tension. Hanks' finest moment comes toward the end of the film, when the full weight of Phillips' ordeal hits him and both the character and the audience release their emotions.

Watch on Netflix