The 'A Man Called Otto' star spoke with ET at the NYC premiere of his new film.
Tom Hanks is standing by his comments regarding the ongoing "nepo baby" debate, while praising the performance and talent of his son, Truman, who stars in his latest film.
Hanks walked the carpet at the New York City premiere of his new film, A Man Called Otto, and he spoke with ET's Rachel Smith about the remarks he made in response to Vulture's recent cover story about so-called "nepo babies," or actors who get their start by being the children of already successful actors.
When asked about his comments that, for his family, acting in Hollywood is a "family business," Hanks shared, "The shoe industry is a family business. The car industry is a family business."
"I think my kids are all like Renaissance artists, you know? [They] are good at whatever they choose to be. But the question here is, can you make it stick?" he continued. "You've got to have a passion, you've got to have a drive. And yeah, our household has existed in the company town that is Los Angeles."
Hanks added that being successful is also "a combination of talent, perseverance, drive, and no small amount of luck."
"Now, without a doubt, we had a director who said, 'Well, why can't your kid play you at an early age?' And that would make sense because we do resemble each other a lot," Hanks said. "But the final analysis is the person has to show up on the day and hit the marks and tell the truth. Only he can make that decision. It was totally up to him."
While Hanks himself isn't a "nepo baby," his children are. The actor is a dad to Elizabeth, 40, Colin, 45, Truman, 37, and Chet, 32. He shares his two oldest children with his first wife, Samantha Lewes, and his two younger kids with his current wife, Rita Wilson.
All of the Hanks kids are involved in the entertainment world; Elizabeth is an actress and producer, Colin is an actor, Truman co-stars with his dad in the upcoming film, and Chet is an actor and aspiring rapper.
Despite it being a family business, Hanks said he has no interest in working on a movie with his entire family.
"No, because I don't want it to be work. I'd like to, you know, I'd like to take a camping trip across the country altogether," Hanks said. "I don't think any of us want to have to show up at a call time and, you know, and ask the question, 'How many shots before lunch?' Nobody wants to do that."
Hanks' new film A Man Called Otto hits theaters in wide release on Jan. 13.
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