Latest news with #SomethingOutWest
San Francisco Chronicle
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Tom Hanks's unhinged son jokes that playing a ‘media liability' in Netflix hit was a stretch
Chet Hanks is in on the joke — and this time, he's turning it into career momentum. The actor and musician, long known for courting controversy, is now drawing praise for his performance in 'Running Point,' the Mindy Kaling-produced Netflix comedy. Hanks, son of Hollywood royalty Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, plays Travis Bugg, a tattooed, attention-seeking basketball star and wannabe rapper who becomes a public relations headache for his team. It's a role that winks knowingly at Hanks' tabloid-fueled past. 'When I first got the audition, it said he's tatted up. He's a wannabe rapper, and he's just like a complete media liability,' Hanks told People in an interview published Thursday, July 10. 'I said, 'I have no idea how I'm going to pull this off. I'm going to have to really get in character, maybe do a full method, Daniel Day Lewis, because obviously I'm nothing like that.'' The actor, who years ago attempted to launch a real-life rap career as Chet Haze, insists the casting was a stretch — but his delivery suggests a knowing smile. 'Hopefully I did it justice,' he added. The role debuted in tandem with the success of 'Leaving Hollywood,' a single from his country duo Something Out West. The group recently released an EP by the same name. 'It doesn't surprise me,' Hanks said. 'That's how God works.' Sober for more than three years, Hanks credits his bandmate Drew Arthur — also in recovery — for helping keep him grounded. 'You don't want to let yourself down,' Hanks said. 'You don't want to let your buddy down.'
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Chet Hanks Gives Tom Hanks a Shoutout For Appearing in His Music Video: ‘Love You, Dad'
Chet Hanks is thankful to get to work on the "Forrest Gump"-themed music video for his band's new album with "the most easygoing dude ever" — his Oscar-winning dad. Chet Hanks, 34, who makes up half the country music duo Something Out West with musician Drew Arthur, spoke on TODAY June 24 about his father, Tom Hanks, appearing in the video for their song "You Better Run." "Oh, man, he's a real prima donna," Hanks joked to Jenna Bush Hager and guest co-host Niecy Nash-Betts about working with his father. "I'm just kidding. He's the most easygoing dude ever. Love you, Dad." Chet Hanks re-creates his father's title character in "Forrest Gump" in multiple scenes in the video for "You Better Run," which dropped in March. At the end of the clip, Tom Hanks pops up next to him on a bench. Arthur recalled the surreal feeling of being on the set with the two-time Oscar winner for the video. "It was funny because I had to do a scene before him, and he's just standing there. And I was like, 'Tom was waiting for me,'" Arthur said. Chet Hanks is the third of four children Tom Hanks shares with wife Rita Wilson, whom he married in 1988. Chet Hanks and Arthur performed their song "Leaving Hollywood" on TODAY from their new EP of the same title. The country music sound is a departure from Hanks' previous musical releases as a rapper. "I think it was necessary," Hanks said about changing genres. "Not that I don't love rap still because I do, but when I got sober I had to switch it up. There was too much association with my old (life)." Arthur is "almost 10 years sober" and said the duo have "been having each other's back" in maintaining their sobriety. Hanks has also gotten back into the family business, as he played Travis Bugg, the point guard for the fictional Los Angeles Waves, on the Netflix sports comedy hit "Running Point," starring Kate Hudson. "It's about time," Hanks said about having a moment as an actor. "It's been a long road. I'm grateful for everything that's happened and where I'm at." This article was originally published on
CNN
01-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
Chet Hanks enlists dad Tom Hanks for music video that recreates ‘Forrest Gump' scenes
'You Better Run,' not walk, to check this one out. That's the title of the latest single from Something Out West, a country music duo with actor Chet Hanks and his friend, Drew Arthur. The music video for the song features Hanks recreating scenes from his father Tom Hanks's 1994 Oscar-winning film 'Forrest Gump.' And if that was enough old schoolness, the younger Hanks enlisted his dad to be in the video. In one replicated scene, the elder Hanks, seemingly dressed as himself, joins his son, who is dressed in character as Gump, on bus stop bench. According to the duo's site, 'Something Out West was born in California when bandmates Chet and Drew became roommates at a pivotal time — both embarking on a journey to sobriety that sparked a deep friendship and creative partnership.' 'Their move to Nashville refined their sound, blending distinctive vocals, timeless storytelling, and contemporary influences that honor the genre's roots while pushing it forward,' it states on the site. 'Now signed to Big Machine Records, the duo just released their debut song, 'Leaving Hollywood.' Currently in the studio with acclaimed producer Julian Raymond, they are crafting their debut project, set for release in 2025.' Chet Hanks also has another gig as on of the stars of the Netflix series, 'Running Point.' The son of Tom Hanks and actress Rita Wilson, Hanks told Esquire magazine that he was excited about both his new series and his new music. 'Ultimately, I consider myself an artist, and acting and music are just two different mediums for being able to express myself,' he said. 'I've been working on this music for a long time, and so I would like to be touring and finally letting the world hear it.'
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tom Hanks joins son to recreate iconic Forrest Gump Savannah bench scene for music video
Tom Hanks sat on the Forrest Gump bench again, in a sense, just not in Savannah and, well, not exactly the famous Forrest Gump bench. It was a replica version of the bench from the scenes at Savannah's Chippewa Square as Hanks' son, Chet, performed scenes from the famous movie during a video for the song 'You Better Run' by his band Something Out West. Chet dressed in the blue checkered button up, gray suit and white Nike sneakers like his father in the famous film. He sat with a box of chocolates at the beginning of the video as a white feather fluttered in the sky. Tom joined him on the bench about halfway through for a brief appearance. It's unclear where the video is shot, but the background resembles a city park. Something Out West, with co-creator Drew Arthur, was formed in California but moved to Nashville, the heart of country music. "Their move to Nashville refined their sound, blending distinctive vocals, timeless storytelling, and contemporary influences that honor the genre's roots while pushing it forward," the band's website states. In Forrest Gump, the title character played by Tom Hanks sits on a bus-stop bench retelling his extravagant, often unbelievable life's story. He does so while waiting on a bus in the middle of Savannah to take him to see his love, Jenny. So, is that bench still in Chippewa Square? Much to the dismay of tourists, the actual park bench is no longer there. The bench on display at the Savannah History Museum on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard is not the bench that you see in the movie. In fact, it's one of a few replicas made and distributed by the production company after the movie wrapped. The original bench is on the Paramount lot in Los Angeles. Contributor: Destini Ambus contributed to this story Ryne Dennis is the Deep South Connect Team Editor for Gannett/USA Today. Find him on X @RyneDennis and email at rdennis@ This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Tom Hanks joins son to recreate Savannah bus bench scene for music video
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Chet Hanks dragged his dad into a Forrest Gump parody music video
Do you get credit for taking much longer to do something crappy that everyone was kind of expecting you to do immediately? This philosophical brainteaser tickles our noggins today courtesy of musician Chet Hanks, who has finally cashed in his 'Did you know my dad is Tom Hanks?' tokens in bulk, releasing a music video this weekend in which he recreates famous moments from Forrest Gump while his father sits on a bench near him, looking some mixture of uncomfortable and proud. Hanks (known to the deep lore divers as Chet Haze) released the video as part of his group Something Out West, which, we are picking up from context clues, is now a country band. (Hanks has had a long, illustrious wander through the White Boy Summer world of rap, pop, and other genres over the years. Also the worlds of vaccine denial and at least one allegation of domestic violence. There are many worlds, in the universe of Chet Hanks.) The song in question, titled 'You Better Run,' would be generically inoffensive, if not for the fact that its video is absolutely stuffed with Forrest Gump references, with the younger Hanks—setting up an implicit charisma comparison that we would not subject ourselves to in a million years—in the place of his father. Who then pops up halfway through, in a bit of a reveal, mugging for the camera in ways that look like they're trying to short circuit the natural instinct to say 'Does Tom Hanks really love his son this much?' We'll be honest: This is one of those things where we're sharing it at least in part to spread around the pain; having viewed the video a few times ourselves, we now need it to exist in other people's memories, too. More from A.V. Club The White Lotus is talking about unchecked aggression here, dude The Gemstones set a parent trap in a masterful vacation episode The Who's Roger Daltry says he's going blind
