Few stars have embraced the title of “America’s Dad” quite like Tom Hanks. While the Oscar winner has spent decades playing beloved father figures on screen, he has also shared a unique Hollywood journey with his three sons, Colin Hanks, Chet Hanks, and Truman Hanks, appearing alongside them in several projects over the years. In fact, some of Hanks’ most personal Hollywood moments have come not opposite fellow stars, but alongside his own children.

There happen to be several father-son collaborations that brought Tom Hanks and his children together in front of the camera.

Tom Hanks welcomed his first child, Colin Hanks, with his first wife, Samantha Lewes, in 1977. Long before establishing himself in Hollywood, Hanks made one of his earliest on-screen appearances alongside his famous father. The father-son duo first appeared together in That Thing You Do! (1996), the musical comedy written and directed by Tom Hanks, where Colin made his feature-film debut in a small, uncredited role as a page. More than a decade later, they reunited for The Great Buck Howard (2008), their most substantial collaboration to date.

In the film, Colin Hanks starred as aspiring writer Troy Gable, while Tom Hanks fittingly portrayed his character’s stern father, Mr. Gable, making it the pair’s most notable on-screen partnership. Away from their collaborations, Hanks went on to build an impressive career of his own, earning recognition through projects such as Roswell, Orange County, and Fargo. His acclaimed performance as Officer Gus Grimly in Fargo even earned Golden Globe and Emmy nominations, helping establish him as a respected actor in his own right rather than simply Tom Hanks’ son. 

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While Colin followed a relatively traditional Hollywood path, Tom Hanks’ second son, Chet Hanks, carved out a far more unconventional route through the entertainment industry.

Tom Hanks and his second wife, Rita Wilson, welcomed Chet Hanks in 1990. Their first collaboration came in Larry Crowne (2011), where Chet made a brief cameo as a pizza delivery boy in the romantic comedy directed by and starring Hanks. Nearly a decade later, the pair reunited in Greyhound (2020), with Chet playing a sonar operator aboard the naval destroyer commanded by  Hanks’s character, Ernest Krause, in the World War II thriller.

The father-son collaborations did not stop there. In 2025, Tom Hanks made a surprise appearance in the music video for 'You Better Run,' a song by Chet Hanks’ country-rock duo Something Out West. The video served as a playful homage to Forrest Gump, with Hanks recreating several iconic scenes from his father’s Oscar-winning classic before Hanks joined him for a humorous cameo on the famous park bench.

Away from his projects with his father, Hanks has appeared in series such as Empire, Shameless, Your Honor, and Netflix’s Running Point, while also reinventing himself as a country-rock musician. In recent years, He has gained attention as one half of Something Out West, even performing at major festivals like Stagecoach, proving that his career has evolved far beyond simply being Tom Hanks' son.

While the Hanks name is often associated with acting, Tom Hanks’ youngest son has built much of his career on the other side of the camera.

Unlike his older siblings, Truman Hanks has never shown much interest in pursuing a traditional acting career. However, he made a notable exception for A Man Called Otto (2023), where he portrayed the younger version of Tom Hanks’ titular character. The casting was largely driven by practicality, as director Marc Forster needed someone who could naturally resemble Tom Hanks during his Big and Splash era. Though initially reluctant, Truman agreed to take the role after a screen test with Rachel Keller convinced filmmakers they had found the ideal young Otto.

The project ultimately became one of the most unique collaborations in the Hanks family. Tom Hanks later revealed that he intentionally stayed away from the set during many of Truman Hanks’ scenes, wanting his son to develop the character independently rather than feel pressured by his famous father. Since then, Truman has largely returned to his preferred role behind the camera, building a career as a cinematographer and camera technician.

A Stanford graduate with a passion for photography, he has worked on major productions including Fallout, West Side Story, and Asteroid City, while also serving as lead cinematographer on several independent projects. Although he occasionally pops up on screen, including a brief comedic cameo in Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme (2025), Truman appears far more interested in crafting stories from behind the lens than starring in front of it. Meanwhile, Tom Hanks himself has returned as Woody in Toy Story 5, bringing back one of animation’s most iconic characters.

However, while Colin, Chet, and Truman Hanks' careers have taken different paths, all three of Hank's sons have found a way to share a piece of Hollywood history with their father.

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What are your thoughts on Tom Hanks’ on-screen collaborations with his sons? Let us know in the comments.