All Of Tom Hanks' Children — Colin, Elizabeth, Chet & Truman — Tried Their Hand In The Movie Biz

Jul 24, 2023 by apost team

Tom Hanks has established an incredible career, starring in more than 80 films over the years. So, to say Tom has made only a few great films would be an understatement, considering he has numerous well-loved blockbusters and award-winning films under his belt. Some of Tom’s most notable films include "Sleepless In Seattle," "Apollo 13," "Philadelphia," "Forrest Gump" and the "Toy Story" franchise. Tom has shown his wide range as an actor over his four decades in the film industry as he has played a variety of characters and showcased just how capable and adaptable he can be. 

Aside from being hailed as “America’s dad,” Tom also has a mighty family of his own. He is wed to Rita Wilson, and they are a well-known power couple in Hollywood. The couple has two sons together, Chet and Truman Hanks, while Tom has two children from a previous relationship with Samantha Lewes – Colin and Elizabeth Hanks. All of the family are actors, have tried acting at one point in time, or work in the entertainment industry behind the scenes.

On many occasions, Tom has spoken dearly and fondly about his children. At the 2020 Golden Globe Awards, the actor received the prestigious Cecil B. DeMille Award for his outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment. In his speech, Tom credited his children and family as being the most important thing to him:

“A man is blessed with a family sitting down front like that. A wife who is fantastic in every way and who has taught me what love is. ... kids who are braver and wiser than their old man is. ... I can't tell you how much your love means to me.”

Read on to learn more about Tom’s four children. 

Although Tom has cemented his status as one of this generation’s biggest stars, he faced some challenging times in his childhood after his parents divorced when he was only 5 years old. On the BBC Radio 4 show “Desert Island Discs,” he revealed he used to share a room with his father and brother when he was 7 years old and constantly sought a place where “I won’t be alone, I won’t be lonely, instead I’ll feel content.” 

In an interview with Graham Bensinger, Tom recalled how isolated he felt then. 

“There was a degree of loneliness because… I kind of fell through the cracks and didn’t really have adults per se that were taking care of me,” Tom recounted.

These struggles informed his own negative feelings after his divorce in 1987. Tom described the split as a “horribly painful time” that left him feeling like a terrible father to his son Colin Hanks and daughter Elizabeth Hanks.

“I thought I couldn’t be a worse father and I couldn't be a worse human being. I remember all those feelings as though I had cursed innocent beings with my own failings,” he lamented.

He said he felt “sad, confused, emotionally crippled,” as he believed “the job as a parent… is to try to guarantee a carefree life for your children for as long as possible. They should not be burdened with the cares of the world until they can handle them and I felt in the course of being their divorced single guy dad that I was burdening them with cares that they didn't deserve to have.”

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In 1978, Tom married Lewes. Back then, they only had two children — Colin and Elizabeth. Despite their parents divorcing in 1987, the two still had a great relationship with their father. Sadly, Lewes passed away in 2002 due to bone cancer at the age of 49. 

Born in 1977, Colin took after his father as an actor. He has starred in various films like “King Kong,” “Orange County,” “The Great Buck Howard,” “The House Bunny" and the “Jumanji” film franchise. 

During his childhood, the “Fargo” actor revealed on an episode of Dax Shepard and Monica Padman's “Armchair Expert” podcast that he had to live with his mother most of the time during the divorce and had to go by with what they had. 

"I don't know how much money that my mom was getting in alimony, but what I heard was, 'We don't have the money for that. Your Dad has that. We don't have that,’” he recalled. 

The Primetime Emmy-nominated actor is married to New York publicist Samantha Bryant, and they have two daughters. Speaking to Today, Colin revealed that Tom and Wilson are typical grandparents who give their grandchildren “a lot of sugar” and who don’t exactly pay attention to their bedtimes. 

On the other hand, Elizabeth, born in 1982, Tom’s second child and only daughter, lived particularly under the radar as she has had only very few acting credits – a background character in “Forrest Gump” and “That Thing You Do!” among them. At one point, she also became a producer of some short films.

Notably, Elizabeth has been using the pen name “EA Hanks” as she writes for various publications like Time Magazine, The Guardian and The New York Times, as indicated in her Twitter bio.  

Tom married Wilson in 1988, and they had two children. 

Chet, born in 1990, is an actor as well as a musician. He had recurring roles on the shows "Shameless" and "Empire." Although he has since come to terms with fame, growing up, it was not easy for him. Chet shared that he often felt misunderstood and that people would make assumptions about him because he comes from a wealthy and famous family. 

In a YouTube video, Chet was candid in detailing how it was difficult for him growing up with a mega-famous family. However, he made it clear that he would not change anything about his life if given the chance. 

"I love my parents," he said. "I wouldn't want any different parents, and I wouldn't want any different life, so I'm very grateful and blessed for all that."

He has been involved in a number of controversies, including with his ex-girlfriend Kiana Parker, who received a protection order against the actor due to allegations of physical and mental abuse. 

Born in 1995, Truman, on the other hand, is not necessarily new to the business because he had production credits in various films before. Notably, he got dragged into the issue of “nepo babies” after making his acting debut in “A Man Called Otto.” Tom stood by his son and said:

“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. 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.”

Are you a fan of Tom Hanks? Are you familiar with his children? Who among them do you think will follow in their father’s successful footsteps? Let us know, and pass this on to your family, friends and other Tom Hanks fans!