As of late, there’s been ongoing discussions across Hollywood regarding nepotism in the industry since a ton of the big names right now are the sons and daughters of other big names. So far, actors like Zoë Kravitz, Lily-Rose Depp and Lily Collins have defended their success, and “OG nepo baby” Jamie Lee Curtis called the discourse “hurtful.” The latest to add to the conversation is Tom Hanks, as one of his sons, Truman Hanks, stars with him in his new movie, A Man Called Otto.
In the 2023 movie release, Truman Hanks plays a younger version of Tom Hanks’ grumpy character in flashback sequences about Otto’s backstory. When the father of four was asked about the nepo baby discussion in light of this, here’s what he said:
Look, this is a family business. This is what we've been doing forever, it's what all of our kids grew up in. We have four kids, they're all very creative… They are all involved in some brand of storytelling. If we were a plumbing supply business, or if we ran you know, the floral shop down the street, the whole family would be putting in time at some point, even if it was just inventory at the end of the year.
While speaking to The Sun, Hanks pointed out that many industries have families getting involved. His comments are not unlike those of Kate Hudson, daughter of Goldie Hawn, who said she sees nepotism “in business way more” than Hollywood along with saying she believes storytelling is in their “blood.” Hanks continued:
The thing that doesn't change no matter what happens – no matter who, what your last name is – is whether it works or not… That's the issue any time any of us go off and try to tell a fresh story or create something that is, has a beginning, a middle or an end. Doesn't matter what our last names are. We have to do the work in order to make that a true and authentic experience for the audience, and that’s a much bigger task than worrying about whether anybody is going to try to scathe us or not.
As Hanks shared, in his opinion, it doesn’t matter where you come from because one has to “do the work” in order to make it. Truman Hanks is the 27-year-old third child of Tom Hanks, who previously found one other small role in another one of his father’s movies, 2020’s News of the World. He also often works behind the scenes on Hollywood productions, working camera utility on movies like Wrath of Man, Black Widow and Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story.
Tom Hanks is right that Hollywood is a “family business.” Along with his wife Rita Wilson being an actor and singer, his eldest child, Colin Hanks, has been a working actor for over 25 years, recently starring in The Offer. The first middle Hanks child is Elizabeth Hanks, who found a few roles in the past, but pursued a career as a writer, finding her byline for news outlets. The second middle child of Tom Hanks is Chet Hanks, who has been an actor as well as making hip hop music along with having his own online fitness club. In the past, Chet Hanks has said he’s “very privileged” but “wasn’t spoiled” by his famous parents.
You can see Tom and Truman Hanks in A Man Called Otto hitting theaters on January 13.
