Tom Hanks, 63, took on an Army sergeant in a pushup contest on the red carpet ahead of the Academy Awards on Sunday.
Hanks, sporting a black tuxedo, faced off against the U.S. serviceman, who was in his Army dress uniform. The two each cranked out a few pushups in front of a row of photographers there to capture the pageantry of the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, California.
Tom Hanks Drops and Does Push Ups with a U.S. Army Sergeant on the #Oscars Red Carpet https://t.co/jAOtmze4qR pic.twitter.com/aqyfzMnlRq
— People (@people) February 10, 2020
Hanks attended the awards show as a nominee for his role in A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, a movie in which he portrayed TV legend Fred Rogers. The actor has been cast as a military member in several major roles, including his parts in Forrest Gump and Saving Private Ryan. In 2006, Hanks was inducted as an honorary member of the U.S. Army Ranger Hall of Fame.
He has remained partnered with several military nonprofit organizations throughout his successful acting career, including Hidden Heroes, an organization that supports military caregivers. Hank has called his nonprofit work a “matter of giving back,” adding, “I have received a vast education of the type of service that was never asked of me because I was too young and there was no draft.”
Beyond Hanks’s lighthearted contest, the Academy Awards were riddled with politicized remarks. Actor Brad Pitt referenced the impeachment and John Bolton during his speech, and Joaquin Phoenix condemned the dairy industry for feeling “entitled” to cow’s milk.
