It probably shouldn’t be surprising that the child of two famous actors is, himself, kind of good at acting (the nepo-baby discourse took over the internet for a reason!), but I have to admit that I’m a little gobsmacked at how much I’m enjoying Tom Hanks’s wayward son Chet on Running Point.
To be fair, all I’d really known about the young Hanks prior to his arc on the show was that he once dabbled in COVID denialism and liked to speak in patois for no apparent reason, but is it possible that being on TV (besides making certain other major changes to his life) has had the opposite effect on him than most nascent celebrities, and actually…made him better?
Running Point, a sporty and slyly funny new Netflix comedy from Mindy Kaling, Ike Barinholtz, and Elaine Ko, stars fellow nepo Kate Hudson as Isla Gordon, the heiress to a family basketball franchise who shocks everyone around her by actually stepping up as team president when her older brother vacates the job for rehab. Given its knowing premise, I’ll admit that I 100% expected Hanks’s appearance in the series as Travis Bugg, a pro basketball star, to be a PR-orchestrated bit of stunt casting that wouldn’t result in actual laughs. Yet watching his weirdly charming performance (Travis tries in vain to say no to his momager, Bonnie Bugg—or “Lady Bugg,” perfectly played by Nicole Sullivan—when she gets him brand deals for a regional Florida car wash and mini golf course instead of Old Spice, all while secretly battling addiction) is making me wonder whether some of père Hanks’s preternatural talent has, indeed, made its way through the genetic pipeline and landed not just with Tom’s older son Colin, known for his roles in shows like Mad Men, Fargo, and Dexter, but also with Chet.
When all we saw of Hanks was his strange red carpet appearances and Instagram rants, it was easy to dismiss him as an overprivileged, edgelord-y rich kid. (And, to be clear, I’m not forgiving his blaccent or legal imbroglios.) But could it be that Chet Hanks is one of those people better in big doses rather than small ones? It’s rather nice to see him step so easily and comfortably into a role on a major Netflix series—even if said role is, uh, “unpredictable and frequently inappropriate white athlete-slash-rapper.” Plenty of Hollywood nepos have already made their way in the entertainment business, but who knows what others secretly harbor more more natural ability than meets the eye? (And if we’re forced to know about them, can they at least be this funny?)
Oh God, is Chet Hanks forcing me to develop increased appreciation and empathy for the 1% of the 1% that is the Hollywood-scion set? I am not at all happy with this development, but I am quite chuffed that there’s another season of Running Point on the way. At this point, all I can do is cross my fingers and hope for Tom and Rita to make a cameo. (Bite the bullet and call your dad, Chet! There’s no shame in it! I’m sure he wants to support you, and I definitely want to see him on the court!)
