Tom Hanks Follows in Kim Kardashian's Footsteps — With an App
Move over, Kim Kardashian! Tom Hanks may have the next must-have app.
Believe it or not, the two-time Academy Award winner is following in the reality star's footsteps… by launching a new iPad download. However, as you may have guessed, his, which is called Hanx Writer, is the antithesis of Kim Kardashian: Hollywood — and that's a good thing.
Where Kardashian's popular app is all fluff (users join an animated Kim for "red carpet adventures" and get to "date and dump other celebs"), the beloved actor's app is for the thinking and men and women out there, specifically writers. The tool transforms users iPads into old-school typewriters — complete with crisp typeface, the click-click-click sound of typing, and, yes, the "ding" when you hit the return key at the end of each line. There are also a few new "luxuries" added, like a delete key. (No more correction tape!) Documents can also be emailed and shared, unlike those college papers you probably slaved over.
[Related: Watch Tom Hanks's Audition for 'Forrest Gump' and 10 Other Screen Tests]
The app is free in the iTunes store, though additional font style and colors and sounds can be purchased for $2.99 each.
Hank's app obviously isn't targeting the same demographic as Kardashian is seeing as most young people today have never even used typewriters. The retro app is a classic — kind of like the movie star himself, who has a collection of 200 typewriters and uses one daily for comments on screenplays or notes to friends.
"What's pleasing to my sensibilities is when you have the report of the key being struck, it allows for clear thinking," the star of Forrest Gump and Philadelphia told USA Today about the app, which is now on sale. "I suppose some people who get the app may just be looking for a different sound, but really it's for people searching for a more personalized experience when writing on an iPad."
He added, "There's also the opportunity here to take your iPad to a coffee house and be really obnoxious with all the clickety-clacking." (Um — please use headphones in public.)
The success of Kim Kardashian: Hollywood has put a spotlight on just how lucrative a celebrity-anchored app can become. According to reports by Bloomberg, Glu Mobile, which developed the reality star's game, will probably pull in $200 million in revenue by the end of this year, giving Mrs. Kanye West a sizable paycheck of her own. The free-to-play game, in which users can pay real money to buy things along the way (virtual clothing!), is currently No. 5 on Apple's Top-Grossing chart.
[Related: Inside Kim Kardashian’s Absurd App]
It's not without its critics though. Kardashian was on the Today show Tuesday to defend her app from naysayers who say it encourages youth to aspire to superstardom and seek material wealth.
"In the game, you definitely see that it's just fun and it's not really serious," said Kardashian. "You pick your friends, you pick your clothes. It's just a fun little game, kind of like when people get into Candy Crush so much. Like, is it good to be obsessed with Candy? It's just something fun to do. All games, I think, are just entertaining." Somehow we doubt Hanx Writer will receive the same type of criticism as his app seems to be nothing but good, old-fashioned fun. Ding!
