Why Tom Hanks has to work on the Web

Larry King

Ben Stiller

Barry Sonnenfeld

Tom Hanks (Getty Images)

Tom Hanks doesn’t need to be working on the Internet.

When you’ve won two Oscars — and are worth a whopping $350 million — appearing in five-minute webisodes for Yahoo is the showbiz equivalent of doing “West Side Story” in Schenectady.

But last week, the “Toy Story” star joined a rapidly growing army of Hollywood heavyweights — Jerry Seinfeld, Ben Stiller and Larry King among them — who have all taken their acts online.

“Just like athletes and celebrities use Twitter to talk directly to their fans, [the Web] provides a much more intimate relationship with their audience,” says “Pawn Stars” producer Brent Montgomery.

For “Electric City,” a slickly produced, animated sci-fi series, star and producer Hanks wrangled Holland Taylor, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Chris Parnell to provide voiceovers.

Seinfeld’s “Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee” — on Crackle.com — features the former sitcom star driving around Los Angeles chatting with other comics.

“Burning Love,” a parody of ABC’s “The Bachelor,” executive produced by Stiller, is also on Yahoo, where “Men in Black” director Barry Sonnenfeld’s new series, “Dinosaurs Vs. Aliens,” debuted yesterday.

So, what’s suddenly luring showbiz elite to the world wide Web?

“No one knows where these digital properties are going to lead,” says Stuart McLean, co-founder of Content and Co., which creates long- and short-form video for the Web.

“And talent always likes to be on the cutting edge of how audiences are receiving their media.”

Yahoo, Hulu and Netflix have the potential to reach millions of viewers,

“That’s pretty potent to creative talent to have that opportunity,” McLean says.

The Web can also provide a faster, cheaper outlet for celebrities to pursue their own personal projects.

“What is in it for me is the chance to be in the hunt again,” says King, who launched a new nightly talk show last week on Hulu.

The veteran host has been eager to return to work since leaving CNN in 2010 — but was unable to find a suitable, traditional outlet.

“The method of delivery is new,” he tells The Post. “But what I am doing is what I have done for 55 years.”

The money is nowhere near what he was making on TV, King, 78, admits.

“I do it for the love of the game,” he says.

So do the other bold-faced names jumping to the Web — but they are rich and successful enough to afford to experiment at this point in their careers.

“You hear about Mark Wahlberg taking 10 or 20 years to get his boxing movie made,” says Montgomery.

“Now, all of a sudden, you can see something through from idea to delivery in a few months. That has to be satisfying.”

The Web has become, in many ways, a creative “incubator,” the “Pawn Stars” producer says.

“You could look at it like the minor leagues,” he says. “If something works there, it is much easier to sell to TV.”

Hanks has already said he hopes to see “Electric City” expanded into graphic novels or online gaming.

It could even potentially end up on TV — in another country.

“In addition to seeing that show in the US on Yahoo, other audiences around the world are likely to see [it] in other formats” that make real money, says Dave Anderson, head of digital media at Shine America.

“Whether that is a traditional TV platform or a movie theater or on demand or something else.”