Tom Hanks turned down the lead in When Harry Met Sally because he was "happy" to be getting divorced.

The actor's wife Rita Wilson - who he wed in 1988, a year after his marriage to Samantha Lewes ended - revealed the Oscar-winning star was offered Billy Crystal's role of Harry Burns in the classic 1989 film, but struggled to understand the perspective of the character.

Speaking on Table for Two with Bruce Bozzi, Rita said: "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.

"And so he could not understand that a person going through a divorce would have anything other than just like, 'I'm so happy'."

Tom went on to star opposite When Harry Met Sally star Meg Ryan in both 1993's Sleepless in Seattle and 1998's You've Got Mail, and Rita explained her husband's casting in the former led to her landing her part as Suzy in the film.

The actress explained she "loved that script so much" when reading it with Tom and was a fan of how Nora Ephron had written Carrie Fisher's parts in When Harry Met Sally and This Is My Life.

When she ran into the filmmaker at a party, she asked if she could audition for the role of best friend Becky if Carrie wasn't going to be cast, and she was invited to try out.

However, Rita "didn't get the part" but it led to her being cast as Suzy and she had a great time.

She said: "They gave it to Rosie [O'Donnell]. But Nora offered me the role of Suzy, this other character. And I was like, 'Oh yeah, that was a really good part of the script. I really like that character. There was a big monologue in there.'

"It was one of the most fun, most wonderful acting experiences I've ever had."

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Source: Bang