Think you could beat Tom Hanks in a push-up contest?
It’s safe to say that Tom Hanks holds a special place in many of our hearts. From his childlike wonder in “Big” to his gritty portrayal of a U.S. Army Ranger in “Saving Private Ryan,” the man has a knack for being endearing on screen. And as the clip below shows, Hanks is pretty endearing in real life too.
The Oscars aren’t often an event that draws a lot of chatter from the military community, in part because the types of films that tend to win Oscars aren’t really the types of films the young men and women of the armed forces are clamoring to see. Film is certainly an art form, but the crowded nights at the base theater are usually a bit more action packed than most best picture nominees.
And then there’s Tom Hanks; a man with near-universal appeal. The list of people with multiple best actor academy awards and NSFW rap songs written about them has to be pretty short. In fact, it wouldn’t be inappropriate to say that, when it comes to making movies and TV that engages a broad variety of audiences, Hanks is in a league of his own… so to speak.
Hanks, now 63, seems pretty spry for his age, challenged a U.S. Army Staff Sergeant to a push-up contest as he made his way through the red carpet at this year’s Oscars. You can’t quite make out what they say to one another at first, but as the push-ups kick off, you can clearly hear Hanks shouting out his counts with a certain degree of confidence that harkens back to his days playing Captain Miller.
Hanks’ form looks solid, with the exception of a slightly shallow push — and you can hear someone in the background yelling, “you’ve gotta go all the way down, sir!” I’d believe it if you told me that was another nearby service member. The two rattle off a quick 25 push ups, before Hanks seems to have had enough, but in what is the sort of classy move that makes me proud to be a veteran, the Staff Sergeant ended his flex there, and stood to shake the actor’s hand.
You can watch the video below:
