Forrest Gump (character) childhood friend Jennifer Curran, who eventually becomes his wife. Tom Hanks portrayed the character in the film and earned an Academy Award for his performance, while Michael Conner Humphreys portrayed Forrest as a child. In 2008, Forrest Gump was named the 20th greatest movie character of all time by "Empire" magazine. Forrest was born near the small town of Greenbow, Alabama, on June 6, 1944. His father was absent during his life, and his mother said he was "on vacation". His mother named Forrest after their ancestor Nathan Bedford Forrest, a Scotch-Irish American and a noted Confederate general in the
Forrest Gump (character) 1976, Forrest asked Jenny to marry him, but she turns him down, saying "You don't want to marry me." Forrest replies with, "Why don't you love me Jenny? I'm not a smart man, but I know what love is." After this exchange, Jenny comes to Forrest's bedroom, tells him she loves him, and the two make love. Wanting to restart on her own, Jenny hails a cab very early the next morning and leaves before he wakes up. Forrest's new-found loneliness leads him to take a run "for no particular reason." At first, he decides to run to the end