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10th Jul 2023

Tom Hanks still knows the rap from Big word for word

Steve Hopkins

Big - Tom Hanks

‘And that is why Tom Hanks is so liked around the world. Such a class act’

He’s one of the world’s most beloved actors and on his birthday, people couldn’t help but remember why.

Tom Hanks, star of Forrest Gump and Cast Away, turned 67 on Sunday and it prompted fans to share the Oscar-winner performing a rap from one of his classic films, as filmmaker Ron Howards looks on.

As expected, Hanks’ delivery was pitch-perfect.

In 2016, Hanks nailed the song from the 1988’s Big, during a press tour for Inferno in Italy. He also banged it out on the Jonathan Ross show.

As Hanks left the press tour, the Saving Private Ryan actor was stopped by vloggers Wesley Chan and Philip Wang, who begged him for a chat.

And the nicest guy in Hollywood, was happy to oblige.

The Vloggers asked Hanks if he remembered the rap from Big, a movie they, like many people, had grown up with.

It is an 80s classic, and follows 12-year-old Josh Baskin who makes a fairground wish to be “big”, then wakes up as a 30-year-old man.

Though the film was released over three decades ago, the actor threw himself into the rap complete with actions as he did a duet with Wang, in an Oscar-worthy rendition. Howard was seemingly in awe of the actor.

Despite being uploaded six years ago, the video by Wong Fu Productions regularly goes viral and has been seen over 936,000 times by the actor’s legion of fans.

The video also contains an interesting fact about Big, which also starred Elizabeth Perkins Robert Loggia John Heard.

Hanks revealed that the classic song was actually “stolen” from his kids’ summer camp.

“We needed a thing in the movie and I said, ‘How about if we just do this little thing, what would you do?’ So I did it and we banged it out.”

“And that is why Tom Hanks is so liked around the world. Such a class act,” one person wrote in the comments.

Another said: “Anyone else rap along? Haha! I can’t believe I remembered the lyrics too.. Didn’t know he “stole” the song from his kids’ summer camp.. the more ya know.”

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Topics:

big,Tom Hanks