People.com Celebrity Parents Tom Hanks Talks Becoming a 'Very Young' Dad at Age 21 — and How Kids' Lives Were All 'Different' The New York Times profiled Tom Hanks in a new interview, where the actor opened up about his decades-spanning career and being a father of four By Jen Juneau Jen Juneau Twitter Jen Juneau is a digital news writer for PEOPLE. A '90s teen and horror film connoisseur, she started at the brand in 2016, after a decade of working as a technical writer and then moonlighting as a journalist beginning in 2013. Originally from New Orleans, Jen grew up both in NOLA and Florida and eventually attended the University of Central Florida in Orlando (still her home base!), where she earned a bachelor's in English/technical communication, with a minor in magazine journalism. People Editorial Guidelines Published on November 13, 2019 01:00 PM Share Tweet Pin Email Tom Hanks is a renowned Hollywood actor and proud father of four adult children today, but it wasn’t easy to juggle it all at the beginning of his career. In an in-depth profile for The New York Times surrounding his upcoming Fred Rogers film A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, Hanks, 63, opens up about becoming a dad for the first time at age 21, and how his older and younger children were raised differently as a result of his differing success levels. “I start thinking about mistakes I made with my own kids and not explaining things or not being there for them. Or being so preoccupied with other things that are going on in our adult world,” the star says of his early days of fatherhood. “My son [Colin Hanks] was born when I was very young. As well as my daughter [Elizabeth Hanks],” he adds. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty Images Tom Hanks and family. Shutterstock Tom Hanks Will Receive the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the 2020 Golden Globes Hanks is dad to Colin, 41, and Elizabeth, 37, from his first marriage to Samantha Lewes. He married actress Rita Wilson in 1988, and they went on to have two sons: Chet, 29, and Truman, 23. “We have this gestalt understanding because [Colin and Elizabeth] remember when their dad was just a guy trying to, you know, make the rent,” Hanks continues. “My other kids, they were born after I had established a beachhead in every way. And so their lives were just different.” With 40-plus years of fatherhood under his belt, Hanks admits that there is no secret to being the perfect parent. The only true constant is being supportive of his kids. Tom Hanks. Steve Granitz/WireImage RELATED VIDEO: Tom Hanks’ Son Chet Hanks Is Two Years Sober and “Wouldn’t Trade It for Anything” “Somewhere along the line, I figured out, the only thing really, I think, eventually a parent can do is say, ‘I love you, there’s nothing you can do wrong, you cannot hurt my feelings, I hope you will forgive me on occasion, and what do you need me to do?’ ” Hanks tells the NYT. “You offer up that to them,” continues the Forrest Gump actor. ” ‘I will do anything I can possibly do in order to keep you safe.’ That’s it. Offer that up and then just love them.” A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood opens in U.S. theaters on Nov. 22.