Tom Hanks Is 'Not Surprised' About His Daughter's Memoir That Alleges Her Mom Samantha Lewes Was Emotionally and Physically Abusive

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06-06-2025

Tom Hanks is speaking out for the first time following the release of his daughter E.A. Hanks' memoir, The 10: A Memoir of Family and the Open Road, which alleges that her mom was emotionally and physically abusive
"I'm not surprised that my daughter had the wherewithal as well as the curiosity to examine this thing," he explained to Access Hollywood recently
E.A. Hanks' memoir was released on April 8 and examines her childhoodTom Hanks is sharing how he really feels about his daughter E.A. Hanks' memoir, The 10: A Memoir of Family and the Open Road — and the claims it brings forth that her mom, actress Samantha Lewes, was emotionally and physically abusive.
The Forrest Gump star, 68, addressed the abuse allegations E.A.'s book — which was published April 8 — during a conversation with Access Hollywood on Wednesday, May 26, at the red carpet premiere of his new film, The Phoenician Scheme.
'I'm not surprised that my daughter had the wherewithal as well as the curiosity to examine this thing that I think she was incredibly honest about,' Hanks told the outlet. 'We all come from checkered, cracked lives, all of us.'
'She's a knockout, always has been,' he continued. 'If you've had kids, you realize that you see who they are when they're about 6 weeks old.'
In the memoir, E.A., whose real name is Elizabeth Anne, details experiencing "emotional violence" and "physical violence" from her mother, whose real name Susan Dillingham, after her parents' divorce.
Hanks and Dillingham tied the knot in January 1978, and their divorce was finalized in 1987. Dillingham got primary custody, and the kids had designated weekend and summer visits with Hanks.
"I would visit my dad and stepmother (and soon enough my younger half brothers) on the weekends and during summers, but from 5 to 14, years filled with confusion, violence, deprivation, and love," E.A., 43, wrote in an excerpt previously obtained by PEOPLE.
She added, "As the years went on, the backyard became so full of dog s--- that you couldn't walk around it, the house stank of smoke. The fridge was bare or full of expired food more often than not, and my mother spent more and more time in her big four-poster bed, poring over the Bible."
E.A. said she moved to Los Angeles after her mother's alleged abuse took a turn for the worse.
"One night, her emotional violence became physical violence, and in the aftermath I moved to Los Angeles, right smack in the middle of the seventh grade. My custody arrangement basically switched — now I lived in L.A. and visited Sacramento on the weekends and in the summer."
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She said during her senior year of high school, her mother called to tell her she was dying. Though her mother was never diagnosed, E.A. believes Dillingham was bipolar with episodes of extreme paranoia and delusion.
Hanks' latest film, The Phoenician Scheme, centers around a wealthy businessman Zsa-zsa Korda (played by Benicio Del Toro), who "appoints his only daughter, a nun, as sole heir to his estate. As Korda embarks on a new enterprise, they soon become the target of scheming tycoons, foreign terrorists and determined assassins,' per IMDb. Hanks plays Korda's business associate, Leland. The film also stars Mia Threapleton, Michael Cera, Willem Dafoe, Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson and more.
It was released in limited theaters on May 30 and will see a wide release June 6.
Read the original article on People