Actor Tom Hanks is best known for his acting roles, but fans might not be aware that he’s also a director, writer, and producer. He is one of the most famous actors in Hollywood, which means he is also one of the best-paid A-listers. The Blast recently reported that “Star Wars” alum and Oscar nominee Adam Driver is worth $23M. How much is Tom Hanks worth? The answer might surprise you!
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Hanks is worth a cool $400 million. That number isn’t all that surprising when you take into account that his current box office gross is approximately $11 billion, as reported by the website. Following the release of “Toy Story 5,” however, that number is likely to rise even further.
In 2020, Hanks was ranked the fourth-highest-grossing American film actor of all time, having earned two Academy Awards, seven Emmy Awards, and four Golden Globes. He’s also been nominated for a Tony Award and five BAFTA Awards. In addition to those honors, he has received several other accolades.
He received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2002, the Kennedy Center Honor in 2014, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016, and the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2020.
Inside The Actor’s Rise To Fame
Tom Hanks was born Thomas Jeffrey Hanks in July 1956, but he actually has some pretty famous lineage. Hanks is a distant cousin of Nancy Hanks and her son, President Abraham Lincoln. He’s also related to children’s host Fred Rogers, whom Hanks portrayed in 2019’s “A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood.”
After growing up in the Bay Area, Hanks studied theater at Chabot College in Hayward, California, and later transferred to California State University, Sacramento. He later dropped out of college after meeting Vincent Dowling, head of the Great Lakes Theater Festival in Cleveland, Ohio, and began working at the festival. His theater work won him the Cleveland Critics Circle Award for Best Actor for his 1978 performance as Proteus in Shakespeare’s “The Two Gentlemen of Verona.”
From Theater To Movies & TV
The following year, Hanks moved to New York City. His first film appearance was in 1980’s “He Knows You’re Not Alone.” Two years later, he landed a starring role in the TV movie “Mazes and Monsters.” He continued to balance his career in theater and TV, landing one of the lead roles in ABC’s “Bosom Buddies.”
After several small guest roles, Hanks found success in 1988’s “Big.” The performance earned him his first Oscar nomination. After a few flops at the box office, Hanks once again found success with 1992’s “A League of Their Own” and “Sleepless in Seattle.” He later won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in “Philadelphia,” in which he played a homosexual lawyer with AIDS who sued his firm for discrimination.
Tom Hanks Is Best Known For Roles Like ‘Forrest Gump’ And ‘Toy Story’
From there, Hanks became a household name. He won his second Oscar for Best Actor for 1994’s “Forrest Gump,” which remains one of his best-known and most-quoted roles. He also starred in the Oscar-winning film “Apollo 13” before going on to voice Sheriff Woody in Pixar’s “Toy Story.” The franchise has proven so successful that “Toy Story 5” was released in June 2026.
Other well-known works include “Saving Private Ryan,” “You’ve Got Mail,” “The Green Mile,” “Cast Away,” “The Terminal,” “The Polar Express,” and many, many more.
Inside Tom Hanks’ Personal Life
Hanks married actress Samantha Lewes in 1978. The couple welcomed a son, Colin, who is also an actor, and a daughter, Elizabeth. They divorced in 1987, and Lewes passed away in 2002 at the age of 49 due to bone cancer.
In 1981, Hanks met actress Rita Wilson on the set of “Bosom Buddies.” They worked together in 1985 on the set of “Volunteers.” The two married in 1988 and have two sons together: Chet and Truman.
Hanks is also a big fan of manual typewriters and has quite an impressive collection. In 2014, Hanks released an iOS app called Hanx Writer, designed to emulate the experience of using a typewriter. In 2017, he released a collection of short stories titled “Uncommon Type,” based on his typewriter collection.