Tom Hanks, two-time Oscar winner, America’s official dad, what seems like the nicest man in Hollywood and holder of the title Famous Actor We’d Be Most Disappointed to Learn Was a Shitbag, isn’t a shitbag. The co-star of new movie The Post was recently asked if he had any advice for young men in the light of recent revelations like the #MeToo campaign, and offered this advice:
“I think the best thing that could happen for any young man entering any workplace is to work for a strong, fair, demanding, taskmaster - task-mistress - of a female boss.
“I’m lucky, I had that. I had that with [Big director] Penny Marshall and [Sleepless in Seattle director] Nora Ephron and [Da Vinci Code film series producer] Amy Pascal and [20th Century Fox CEO] Stacey Snider.
“I worked for a lot of women who took no slack from me and expected the absolute best.”
Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson at the red carpet event for The Post
He’s nice, Tom Hanks, isn’t he? That’s a spontaneous answer to an unexpected question and it’s eloquent, specific, helpful and positive. What a dude.
He’s spoken about equality before, telling Emma Watson last year: “If we are not continuously moving towards equal rights, equal opportunities and equal freedoms for every member of the human race - not just that half that is male - then we have squandered all we have learned.”
You know what’s also probably good advice for young men? Before doing anything, think to yourself, what would Tom Hanks do? There are far worse codes to live your life by.
Hanks’ wife, fellow actor Rita Wilson, also had some wise words to impart on younger people at the red carpet event, telling reporters: “We have two ‘millennials,’ if you want to call them that, and I think there has already been a shift because those kids grew up understanding equality, whether it was gender equality or sexual equality,” she said.
“I think that that generation is already very present and very aware, and I think it’s going to be, moving forward, they’re going to find it easier to have that kind of attitude going forward.”
(Images: Rex)
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