I stumbled onto this item over at Deadline Hollywood Daily earlier this afternoon. Apparently Tom Hanks, who was elected First Vice-President of the Academy earlier this week, was the group’s first choice for the top spot. In fact, Tom Sherak, who was ultimately elected president, is the one who nominated Hanks in the first place.
Here’s what Nikki Finke dug up:
Sherak…thought Hanks could be a “Gregory Peck-type” AMPAS leader. But insiders tell me Hanks declined, saying he “didn’t feel he could put the time in”. So his name was withdrawn, and that’s when Sherak got the gig. At least it’s comforting to know that AMPAS’ and Sherak’s heads were in the right place by wanting an actor instead of two back-to-back studio shills.