The son of two-time Oscar winner Tom Hanks, Colin was born in Sacramento, California. Although his father is an acting icon, Hanks wanted to follow in his father's footsteps without a helping hand. He studied theatre at Loyola Marymount University in California, and during his school years he starred in numerous student films and performed in countless theatrical productions, which later led to professional roles in stage productions of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Noises Off.

He received his first taste of working on a film set in 1995 when he was hired as a production assistant for the film Apollo 13 (which starred his dad). After that experience, the young actor decided to try and get a role in his father's directing debut, That Thing You Do!. Not interested in landing a role due to his name, Hanks used a stage name with producers while auditioning. He bagged a small role as a "male page."

In 1999, Hanks found work outside of his father's shadow, and was cast in a starring role on the sci-fi television series, Roswell, playing Alex Whitman. During his off seasons from Roswell, he landed major roles in two teen flicks: Whatever It Takes (2000) playing Cosmo, and Get Over It (2001) playing Felix Woods.

Having proved his worth outside of Tom Hanks circles, Colin decided to work with his dad in the mini-series, Band of Brothers, in which Tom directed. With other feature film projects in the works, such as his starring role in Orange County (2002), Colin was cast in a small role in the World War II series based on Stephen Ambrose's non-fiction book about an Army rifle company that parachuted into France on D-Day.

In addition to his acting interests, Hanks plays bass guitar for his hip-hop band, The Underlords. He is currently dating actress Busy Philipps. 

Credit: tribute.ca