Tom Hanks had a long and illustrious career in show business. He was in a number of great movies, such as Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, and Cast Away. Unsurprisingly, his children dipped their toes in the industry as well.
The veteran actor has four children, two from his first marriage with Samantha Lewes and two with his wife, Rita Wilson. Colin, his eldest is probably the most familiar to audiences because he has starred in several noteworthy projects. Elizabeth, Hank’s only daughter, has also appeared in some movies for cameo roles and is a writer. Chet Hanks has also dabbled in acting as well as rapping. And Truman Hanks has been involved in show business both behind and in front of the camera.
The Hanks children’s respective careers in the showbusiness industry have labeled them certified “nepo babies,” the term is given to children of actors who also go into the business. And even though Tom Hank’s children are not all entirely in the industry, they still dabbled in it.
When asked about his opinions on his children being in showbusiness, Hanks 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. If we were a plumbing supply business or if we ran the florist 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.”
He added, “The thing that doesn’t change no matter what happens, no matter what your last name is, is whether it works or not. That’s the issue anytime any of us go off and try to tell a fresh story or create something that has a beginning and a middle and an end. [It] Doesn’t matter what our last names are. We have to do the work to make that a true and authentic experience for the audience.”
The issue of nepotism in Hollywood was brought to light by a New York magazine’s issue cover, calling the children of actors “nepo baby” from the internet slang. There have been debates on whether nepotism babies have earned their way into the industry. Critics say they have just been born into famous parents by luck. A few celebrities have spoken out against the term, saying it undermines an actor just because they were born in Hollywood.
Technically, nepotism babies in Hollywood have existed even before the term for them. Some nepotism babies even exceeded their parents, especially with the younger generation.
Some notable nepotism babies aside from Tom Hank’s children are Dakota Johnson, Zoe Kravitz, Maya Hawke, Jaden Smith, and Billie Lourd. Many other celebrities aside from those mentioned had parentage in Hollywood. Critics are questioning the credentials of these nepotism babies, saying that they already had the advantage of being born into showbusiness royalty, so everything else came easily to them.
Based on the debate, it seems nepotism babies in Hollywood need to prove themselves twice as hard. Tom Hanks was correct in saying that last names don’t matter. What matters is whether they are good at what they do.