Chet Hanks, though he’s now very much carved out his own lane in the zeitgeist of American pop culture, says he struggled to rise above the misguided assumptions of the general public earlier in his life.
The Running Point actor and Something Out West singer, for those unfamiliar, is the son of Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, not to mention the younger half-brother to Colin Hanks. Speaking with Good Charlotte frontman Joel Madden for Artist Friendly, Hanks dove deep into how his experiences growing up differed dramatically from what some may assume.
Hanks, who recently co-starred in a shrewdly crafted morning-after pill for the Julie brand, noted that, for many who grow up with famous parents, their interactions are weighed down by preconceived notions.
“Who I am is not even a thought in everybody’s mind,” he said, as seen below. “It’s an afterthought. Or if they do have a thought about who you must be, it’s negative. … ‘I bet he’s such a little, spoiled, cocky brat.’”
As a child, Hanks added, it’s difficult to have the wisdom required to realize that such negativity often stems from the “weird shit” people have going on in their own lives, causing them to project onto you. This, coupled with “weird dick riders” who think proximity to fame might net them some of their own, led to complicated feelings for Hanks in his earlier years.
“The result, for me at least, was to internalize it, forming the belief that there is something wrong with me,” he added. “I must just suck, you know what I mean? Like, really what it is is just feeling worthless. Just, bro, I felt worthless. People ask me what was it like for you growing up. … They have an idea in their head of, like, some awesome ‘Ding, ding, ding. Jeeves, please bring in my croissants.’ And that wasn’t it, dude. That wasn't it. It was just feeling fucking worthless.”
Hanks also highlighted how, due to growing up with famous parents, there is a tendency for people to outright not believe you when you get candid about personal struggles you may be facing. These days, however, it’s clear he’s made peace with it all, and has indeed established his own identity as an actor and recording artist and all-around headlineable pop culture figure.
In the past, Hanks has taken a slightly tongue-in-cheek approach to addressing his famous parents. Back in March, for example, he jokingly asked fans whether they thought Tom and Rita were “proud” of him for making a song about cocaine and strippers.
