Tom Hanks Returns to Broadway with Kelli O’Hara in This World of Tomorrow

Tom Hanks is returning to Broadway in fall 2027 to star alongside Kelli O’Hara in the time-travel romance This World of Tomorrow, marking his first Broadway appearance in over 14 years. The production will play a Shubert theater following a sold-out Off-Broadway run at The Shed.

Tom Hanks is heading back to the Broadway stage. The Oscar winner will reunite with Tony Award winner Kelli O’Hara for a limited engagement of This World of Tomorrow, a play Hanks co-wrote with James Glossman. Tony Award winner Kenny Leon will direct the transfer following a sold-out eight-week run at The Shed in New York during 2025.

Bert Allenberry and the 1939 New York World’s Fair

The play draws on short stories from Hanks’ 2017 collection, Uncommon Type. Set near the end of the 21st century, the story follows a scientist named Bert Allenberry, played by Hanks, who is determined to change his future by returning to the past. He repeatedly travels back to June 8, 1939, at the New York World’s Fair in Queens, where he meets Carmen, portrayed by O’Hara.

During the Off-Broadway run, critic Allison Considine wrote in New York Theatre Guide that Hanks is a marvel onstage and O’Hara is magnetic.

Kenny Leon and Producers Prepare the Broadway Transfer

Director Kenny Leon expressed enthusiasm about bringing the production to a broader audience on Broadway. Producer Brian Anthony Moreland is spearheading the commercial run in association with The Shed. The announcement was made by producer Brian Anthony Moreland in association with The Shed, featuring Alex Poots as Artistic Director and Meredith “Max” Hodges as Chief Executive Officer.

I’m so excited to continue this work on this amazing new American play. There’s no time like the present to further explore this story of love and time travel from Glossman and Hanks. More than anything, I look forward to even more audiences who will have the chance to witness the onstage chemistry of Kelli O’Hara and Tom Hanks.

Kenny Leon, Director

For Hanks, the engagement marks a return to Broadway for the first time since his debut in Nora Ephron’s 2013 play Lucky Guy, which brought him a Tony Award nomination. O’Hara enters the project with nine career Tony nominations, including a win for Best Actress in a Musical for The King and I in 2015, alongside television work on HBO’s The Gilded Age.

Hanks brings an extensive career in film and literature to the stage, having earned Academy Awards and Golden Globe Awards for Philadelphia and Forrest Gump. His resume also features Oscar-nominated film performances in A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Saving Private Ryan, Cast Away, and Big, alongside screen credits like The Polar Express. As an author, he has written the books Uncommon Type and The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece.

Broadway Run Will Occupy a Shubert Theater

The Broadway run will occupy a Shubert theater to be announced. Complete casting and creative team details remain forthcoming.

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