Tom Hanks had himself and those watching at home in tears as he picked up the Cecil B. deMille Award at the Golden Globes last night. But it was his son Chet Hanks who really set Twitter on fire with his appearance at the award show.
Chet, the 29-year-old son of Tom and Rita Wilson, went viral after he shared a video of himself on the red carpet to Instagram, showing him speaking with a Caribbean accent.
“BIG UP FIMI WHOL FAMILY SOON COM AT DI AWARDS NA SEEN 🔥 🔥 🔥 CHUNE IN,” he captioned the clip. His mother clearly approved, commenting, “Maybe the best laugh of the night.”
Hanks’ followers also loved the clip on his page, but it didn’t get quite the same reaction on Twitter, where it made the rounds after being ripped from his account.
“Why is Tom Hanks’ son Chet Hanks speaking patois?” asked one user, in a post that has since racked up thousands of replies, retweets and likes.
why is Tom Hanks’ son Chet Hanks speaking patois? pic.twitter.com/mNh8ih8JhA
— Brittny Pierre 🥳♒️ (@sleep2dream) January 6, 2020
Here’s just a sampling of what people are saying about it:
— A Doofus Has No Name [Cuddling Orphaned Possums] (@wednesday181) January 6, 2020
giving very much pic.twitter.com/Suep09qr6c
— toe (@damn_toe) January 6, 2020
This is deeply disturbing and chaotic
— 🔥🖼Valerie Complex (@ValerieComplex) January 6, 2020
Sometimes the apple falls off the tree and rolls down a hill and into a ravine.
— Inveigh Malmsteen (@PietroPaparella) January 6, 2020
Tom: “OK, Chet, you can come with us to the Globes as long as you behave yourself. This is an important night for—“
Chet Hanks: https://t.co/AgXejOFUg8
— New John City (@THEJohnODowd) January 6, 2020
Why does Chet Hanks continue to embarass his father like this?
What did Tom Hanks do to deserve this messssss?! Whew chileeeeee. https://t.co/PBrVWCULiF— Nola Thee Journalist (@NolaMarianna) January 6, 2020
— Theala (@ThealaB22) January 6, 2020
The video and the social media reaction to it generated headlines all over the internet, where it was picked up by CNN, Buzzfeed, Cosmopolitan, Us Weekly, Jezebel and more.
The CNN headline — “Tom Hanks’ son Chet is filmed speaking patois at the Golden Globes — and the internet is baffled” — got back to Hanks himself, who shared a screen shot of it this morning on Instagram.
“Average citizens: damn this is scary I can’t believe we’re on the verge of WW3 let me check the news smh,” he captioned the post, before showing a shot of the news organization’s homepage.
Chet has been in the rap game for some time now under the name Chet Haze. When TooFab caught up with him in 2018, he responded to cultural appropriation criticism at the time by saying culture “isn’t race based.”
“Culture — as far as pop culture, as far as modern American culture, as far as what’s cool and hip — it isn’t race based,” he explained. “It’s not about what race you are. It’s not even about what kind of socioeconomic class you come from. It’s beyond race, it’s beyond class and I think that’s what kids these days are exhibiting.”
“Hip-hop culture is no longer a sub-culture of American culture,” he continued. “Rap music has surpassed every genre. Rap music is bigger than pop music, it’s bigger than rock, it’s bigger than EDM. That’s what’s cool right now. That’s what kids are being raised up in. I think racial tensions are making everything very sensitive right now, but I think the next generation — younger kids — understand that’s it’s not about race and it’s not about class.”
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