Rita Wilson Archives

Did Hollywood legend Tom Hanks just die suddenly from an unspecified cause of death?!

Take a look at the viral claims, and find out what the facts really are!

Claim : Tom Hanks Just Died Suddenly!

People are sharing YouTube, Facebook and TikTok videos claiming that Hollywood legend Tom Hanks just died suddenly of an unspecified cause of death, with titles like :

10 minutes ago : Tom Hanks passed away | R.I.P. Tom Hanks

Stop breathing 5 minutes ago / RIP Legendary Hollywood actor Tom Hanks / Goodbye Tom Hanks #tomhanks

10 Minutes Ago Sad News Tom Hands Is Pass Away Expected Soon Family Prepared To Say Goodbye

R.I.P. Tom Hanks touches our hearts with this tearful goodbye

R.I.P. It’s With Our Deepest Regret to Report About Tom Hanks Mourns Beloved

R.I.P. Tom Hanks : Tom Hanks dead 2023

Truth : Tom Hanks Did Not Die Suddenly

This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS created and propagated by people to generate income from page views and advertising, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : Tom Hanks Is Still Alive + Well!

Tom Hanks is still very much alive and well, as of May 16, 2023, when his interview on The Adam Buxton podcast was released. In that interview, he said that AI may allow him to continue appearing in movies even after he dies.

I can tell you that there is discussions going on in all of the guilds, all of the agencies, and all of the legal firms in order to come up with the legal ramifications of my face and my voice and everybody else’s being our intellectual property.

What is a bona fide possibility right now is, if I wanted to, I could get together and pitch a series of seven movies that would star me in them in which I would be 32 years old from now until kingdom come.

Anybody can now recreate themselves at any age they are by way of AI or deep fake technology. I could be hit by a bus tomorrow and that’s it, but performances can go on and on and on and on.

Of course, that podcast was recorded earlier – on April 18. But on the same day the podcast was released, Tom Hanks himself posted about his wife’s latest record with Emily Shackleton – I Loved You First.

Tom Hanks is also on a book tour, to promote his novel – The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece. On May 16, he was in Tulsa for a book signing and a Q&A session with his fans.

So yeah, Tom Hanks is very much alive, well, and healthy!

Fact #2 : No Legitimate Media Outlet Reported His Death

These YouTube / TikTok / Facebook videos have been circulating for weeks and months, but people don’t seem to notice that no legitimate media has reported his death.

When Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson, got infected with COVID-19, the worldwide media breathlessly reported on their condition – they were both fine.

No legitimate media outlet has reported that he died recently from any cause. Why should you believe random YouTube / TikTok / Facebook videos?

Fact #3 : The Photos Were Edited

I analysed the photos used in these videos, and traced the origin of three examples used in many of these videos.

This photo was edited from a Getty Images stock photo of a funeral, to add a crying lady and other people, as well as a photo of Tom Hanks in a frame.

This photo of his funeral is also fake. This is actually a photo of Serbian folk singer, Šaban Šaulić, who died on February 17, 2019. His funeral was held on February 22, 2019.

The fake news creator flipped the photo, and superimposed a large and overly bright head of Sylvester Stallone together with a framed photo of Tom Hanks magically floating in front of him!

This funeral photo is really a stock photograph of a funeral that is available on the Unsplash website.

Fact #4 : This Video Is From Veep

This video that some people are sharing out is actually a video clip from the final scene of the comedy television series, Veep.

It shows Tom Hanks dying at the age of 88, after winning four Oscar awards and a statuette for Philadelphia 2.

Just in case you are wondering, Tom Hanks was born on July 9, 1956) and will only turn 88 in the year 2044. And the movie Philadelphia 2 does not exist.

Fact #5 : Tom Hanks Death Hoax Driven By Fake Fact Check Too

This Tom Hanks death hoax is, ironically, also being driven by a fake fact check article by the MediaMass Project, which keeps “updating” the dates in their fake fact check article:

Rumors of the actor’s alleged demise gained traction on Sunday after a ‘R.I.P. Tom Hanks’ Facebook page attracted nearly one million of ‘likes’. Those who read the ‘About’ page were given a believable account of the American actor’s passing:

“At about 11 a.m. ET on Monday (May 15, 2023), our beloved actor Tom Hanks passed away. Tom Hanks was born on July 9, 1956 in Concord. He will be missed but not forgotten. Please show your sympathy and condolences by commenting on and liking this page.”

Hundreds of fans immediately started writing their messages of condolence on the Facebook page, expressing their sadness that the talented 66-year-old actor was dead. And as usual, Twittersphere was frenzied over the death hoax.

On Tuesday (May 16) the actor’s reps officially confirmed that Tom Hanks is not dead. “He joins the long list of celebrities who have been victimized by this hoax. He’s still alive and well, stop believing what you see on the Internet,” they said.

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Their claim of a viral R.I.P. Tom Hanks Facebook page is false. There is no such Facebook page. It is their standard fake fact check spiel for fake celebrity deaths.

The statement from Tom Hanks’ unnamed rep confirming that he is not dead is exactly the same as statements from other reps whose celebrities MediaMass claimed were victims of death hoaxes, like Celine Dion, Simon Cowell, Cristiano Ronaldo, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Justin Bieber, Harrison Ford, Sylvester Stallone, Dolly Parton, Lucy Liu, Clint Eastwood, and Melanie Laurent.

He joins the long list of celebrities who have been victimized by this hoax. He’s still alive and well, stop believing what you see on the Internet.

Hidden in the description page for the MediaMass Project is a disclaimer that they are a “satire” website. That’s the usual “cover” for websites peddling fake news.

Regardless of their reasons, anything posted by MediaMass.net must be considered as fake news, until proven otherwise.

Fact #6 : This Is Just Fake Celebrity News

This is yet another example of fake celebrity news created to generate page views and money through advertising, just like these examples:

Please help us FIGHT FAKE NEWS by sharing this fact check article out, and please SUPPORT our work!

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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

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Tag Archives: Rita Wilson

Did Tom Hanks Just Die Suddenly?!

Claim : Tom Hanks Just Died Suddenly!

Truth : Tom Hanks Did Not Die Suddenly

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