Tom Hanks’ Son Chet Defends His ‘White Boy Summer’ Meme

Chet Hanks is defending his “White Boy Summer” meme after a new report revealed it went viral among hate groups.

Tom Hanks’ 33-year-old son coined the “White Boy Summer” Instagram meme in 2021. He said it was jokingly playing off Megan Thee Stallion’s “hot girl summer” and “Christian girl fall.”

“I have a feeling this summer… it’s going to be a white boy summer,” Hanks wrote. “Take it how you want, I’m not talking about Trump, the Nascar white guy. I’m talking about me, the Jon B. Jack Harlow white boy type, you know what I mean.”

But a new report from the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism released Tuesday says the phrase has since been co-opted by white supremacist groups. The report also notes that Hanks’ “White Boy Summer” font is a Gothic-style font similar to one used by those groups.

“Over the past two months, white supremacists and neo-Nazis have called for the destruction of pride flags, the assassination of the N-word and communists, and the creation of militias, all under the slogan ‘White Boy Summer,'” the report reads.

He adds that several extremist groups, including the Proud Boys, White Lives Matter and the Identitarian movement in Europe, all use the phrase.

Hanks responded to the new report on Instagram on Wednesday: “White Boy Summer was created to be fun, playful, and a celebration of white boys who love beautiful queens of all races. Anything that has been twisted to support any form of hatred or bigotry against any group of people is deplorable and I condemn it. I hope we can all love one another and treat one another with kindness and dignity.”

Hanks has starred in series such as Shameless And Empireand also raps under the name Chet Haze.