"... I met Tom Hanks in Idaho in 2002, and he started out, 'I love your book.' I thought, well, OK. Then he reached down and picked up his copy of the book, which was all underlined, had marginal notes with Post-It notes sticking out of it. It became very clear quickly he had not only read the book, but studied the book. ... I knew he'd do it right. He's a solid, very talented man. I was willing to say 'Yeah, go ahead.' "

"The man is a space enthusiast, he was a closet astronaut. I went to an interview with Ron Howard after he bought the option. This was before anybody was on board. We talked for over 5 hours. At the end he asked who do you want to play your part? I didn't know mcuh about actors or actresses, but I had just seen Dances With Wolves so I said how about Kevin Costner. Needless to say Tom has kidded me ever since. He is a wonderful gentleman and most important a true friend."

"Tom is such a great person to work for. He keeps the set up-beat and happy, and is a pleasure because he doesn’t do hundreds of takes. He tries to make the things as convenient as possible for the crew."

"It’s really hard to choose. We had Tom Hanks, and that was a tremendous honor. He was incredibly charming, but he is Tom Hanks".