Tom Hanks’ son, Chet Hanks, has asked for help online after saying he’s currently stranded in Colombia and can’t get back home.
The 35-year-old actor and model posted a video on Friday (27 February), opening with a question to followers about whether they were “ready for story time” before laying out how things spiraled.
He said he’d flown to Puerto Rico last week for his “home Max’s birthday party,” but added that plans changed when he chose to stop in Medellin to visit a friend called Taylor.
“Sounds good, right?” he said, before adding: “We’ll check this out.”
Chet then explained that he’s been traveling using his Greek passport because he holds dual citizenship.
“I’m traveling with my Greek passport because I’m a dual citizen,” he said, claiming his US passport was close to expiring and he didn’t want to risk issues because of it.
He believed using his other passport would make things simpler.
But he said that decision ended up creating a different problem.
In the comments, people quickly weighed in. One viewer wrote: “Better call someone in your family to have them FedEx your passport to you ASAP.”
Another replied with a joke referencing Cast Away: “Tom Hanks doesn’t have the best of luck with FedEx.”
Chet continued by describing what happened when he tried to head home.
“I go to the airport to check in [for] my flight three hours early.
“This is an international flight. They tell me that if I’m using a foreign passport, I need a green card to get back into America.”
He said that because he’s an American citizen he doesn’t have one, and claimed that left him “literally stuck in Colombia. I’m stuck in Medellin.’
One person reacted to that part, writing: “Crying at I don’t have a green card cuz I’m an American citizen.”
The situation appears to stem from travel and entry requirements when returning to the US while presenting a non-US passport.
Chet added that there are “worse” places to end up stuck, but said he now has to go to “Bogota” to resolve the issue.
He also told viewers he wants people to “free” him, explaining he’s not keen on taking the one-hour flight to Bogota.
Others offered practical advice. One person wrote: “Go get a new passport in Bogota. And read up on traveling with dual passports so it doesn’t happen again.”
Another suggested turning it into a chance to explore more of the country: “Or you can see this issue as an opportunity to know more about Colombia. You can visit Cali, Cartagena, Eje Cafetero before heading to Bogota!”