Colin Hanks is the son of Tom Hanks. The iconic actor had Colin with his first wife, Samantha Lewes. Though Tom and Samantha later divorced, Colin remained close to his dad and grew up to see him pursuing his movie career.
Tom Hanks never pressured his son to go into the movie business but supported his decision, a move that paid off. Though Colin Hanks may not be as accomplished as his father, he is making good progress as an actor and has been featured in several critically acclaimed movies and TV series.
Colin Hanks is the First Child and Son of Tom Hanks
Colin Hanks is related to Tom Hanks as he is the actor’s very first child. Of course, the senior Hanks needs no introduction as he is one of the most iconic actors that the world has ever seen. In a mercurial career spanning multiple decades, he has appeared in critically acclaimed movies such as Philadelphia, Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, Sleepless in Seattle, and Catch Me If You Can.
He has received numerous honors, including two Oscars for best male lead actor and a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016. Tom Hanks has a total of four children, and they are Colin, Elizabeth, Chester, and Truman. Colin and Elizabeth are the product of his first marriage, while Chester and Truman are from his second marriage.
Who is Colin Hanks’ Mother?
Colin Hanks’ mother is Samantha Lewes, an actress, and Tom Hanks’ first wife. The late Samantha Lewes was a native of San Diego, California, and was born on the 29th of November 1952. She studied acting at Sacramento State University in the 70s and subsequently portrayed minor roles in a handful of movies and TV series.
They include the 1984 TV movie Mr. Success and an episode of the TV series Bosom Buddies in 1981. Colin Hanks’ mother died on the 12th of March 2002 at the age of 49 as a result of complications arising from bone cancer.
Colin Hanks’ Parents Divorced When He Was Ten, and He Grew Up With His Mom
Colin Hanks’ mom and dad met during their years as acting students in Sacramento in the 70s. They began dating and welcomed Colin in 1977. They then wed in 1978. The couple’s marriage lasted for nine years, during which they welcomed another child, a daughter named Elizabeth. They then divorced in 1987.
At the time of the divorce, Colin was ten years old, and his mom got primary custody of him while visitation rights were given to his dad. He, therefore, left Los Angeles with his mom and returned to Sacramento. He spent the majority of his formative years in Sacramento but also visited his dad during the holidays and the weekends.
In this way, he was able to build a good relationship with his father. His dad also worked hard to provide a good life for him, but he didn’t live extravagantly as his dad was still a working actor, barely making ends meet, as against the wealthy superstar he later became.
He Maintained Close Relations with his Dad, Who Inspired Him to Pursue Acting
Colin Hanks was certainly inspired to go into acting by his dad. As he recalled, on some occasions, when he went to visit his dad, his dad would be getting ready to go on set and would often ask him to tag along. Tagging along exposed him to the finer arts of filmmaking at an early age, and he later decided to explore that path.
Colin was 22 years old when he scored his first role as Alex Whitman in the sci-fi TV series Roswell in 1999. He gave a good account of himself as a high schooler dealing with the fallout of an alien invasion in his local town, and this led to other movie roles.
Colin is Now an Award Winning Actor but is Yet to Reach His Father’s Heights
Since his first outing in Roswell, Colin Hanks has gone on to feature in several movies and TV series over the years and make a name for himself. Some of his most notable works include Fargo, The Offer, The Good Guys, King Kong, and Orange County. He has received some awards, including the Soaring Star Award at the 2005 San Diego Film Festival. He has also received a Golden Globe, Primetime Emmy, and Critics Choice TV awards nomination for best-supporting actor in a miniseries.
Colin has also managed to build an estimated net worth of $14 million, a further testament to his success. Despite all these, he still has some ways to go before he can match his father’s achievements.
Tom Hanks is one of the most iconic and beloved actors in the history of Hollywood. He has served as a leading man in numerous movies over the years. He has received multiple accolades, including a Kennedy Center honor in 2014. He also has a net worth of $400 million which makes him 27 times richer than his son.
Tom and Colin Hanks Have Done One Movie Together
Though Colin Hanks and his dad are in the same industry, they do not spend much of their time talking about the nitty-gritty of the acting business. They instead discuss life tips, such as how to make out time for family while still navigating a busy acting schedule. Asides from this reluctance by father and son to talk shop, Colin has also admitted that starring in a movie with his dad has never been high on his priority list.
He, however, relented and agreed to work together with him on the 2008 comedy-drama, The Great Buck Howard. The Great Buck Howard is a film about a father and son that clash over the latter’s career choices. Colin portrayed a son named Troy, while Tom played the dad named Mr. Gable. Colin later revealed that he was glad and proud to do the film.
Colin Hanks Maintains a Close Relationship with his Dad
Colin Hanks has maintained a close relationship with his famous dad. He has often spoken about all the profound life pieces of advice he has gotten from his dad. He has also described how great that his dad and stepmom, Rita Wilson are as grandparents to his kids. Colin Hanks has also addressed some light-hearted aspects of his relationship with his dad, including the fact that they closely resembled each other.
Back in 2019, he did an Instagram story in which he revealed that whenever he shares a post on social media, he will be bombarded with comments about how much he looks like his dad. The actor revealed that it happens a lot and that he has lost track of the number of times people have made such a comment.
He has Spoken about the Challenges that Come with Being Tom Hanks’ Son
Colin Hanks has undoubtedly benefitted from the fact that he is Tom Hanks’ son, but there have also been challenges. Colin has revealed that the fact that he is the son of a famous actor got him the chance to audition for roles, but it also meant that people placed unnecessarily high expectations on him, which were hard to live up to.
He had to cope anyway, though, and one of the things that helped him as he was starting was a piece of evergreen advice from his dad that he should make sure that whatever career path he pursues is one that he loves as this is what will enable him to stick by it in the long run.
