If Bill Murray is the President of Fun, then Tom Hanks is the Vice President. Sure, he may not jump out of the bushes to play kickball with you and your friends, but he might post pics with your fake drunk friend on the internet, and he will surely dance whenever there is a hint of rhythm and a need to get the party started. Because of that and his performance in Carly Rae Jepsen’s new music video, it seemed like a good idea to celebrate Hanks’ best dance moments.
“I Really Like You”
Let me tell you how good Tom Hanks is in Carly Rae Jepsen’s “I Really Like You” video. I didn’t even notice Justin Bieber dancing next to him. I had to read that Bieber was in the video. Hanks just blows him off the screen because that’s what happens when you ride with the king.
At Scooter Braun’s Wedding
Justin Bieber was also present the last time that Tom Hanks’s wicked dance moves went viral, filming the two-time Oscar-winning actor as he got up and danced to Montell Jordan’s seminal ’90s groove, “This Is How We Do It” at Scooter Braun’s wedding.
Bachelor Party
Some people prefer the coked up mule or “Little Demon,” but to me, Tom Hanks’ crowd pleasing table dance is how you sell Bachelor Party to someone who has never seen it before.
Big
In the above scene, Hanks’s character, Josh Baskin, walks the massive FAO Schwarz toy store in Manhattan with his boss (Robert Loggia!) and stumbles upon a big floor piano mat. The two men (or, one man and one boy trapped in a man’s body) then play “Heart and Soul” with their feet while simultaneously creating an iconic movie moment that has haunted Hanks on talk shows for more than 25 years.
The Jonathan Ross Show
Case in point, Hanks is joined on the mat by a high-heeled Sandra Bullock for a little “Chopsticks” while visiting The Jonathan Ross Show in the UK. In this clip, he mostly observes as a hyperactive host and his sidekick do the dance on another talk show.
Saturday Night Live
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Hanks has had a lot of memorable moments on SNL (“Mr. Belvedere Fan Club,” “The Stand Ups,” and “Girl Watchers”) but his appearance in what had to be the 38th Butabi Brothers sketch probably doesn’t crack his top 10. It’s good enough to make a list of Hanks’s notable dance moments, though.
Joe Versus The Volcano
Hanks loses his volleyball friend on a crude raft in Castaway, but he looses his inhibitions on a crude raft in Joe Versus The Volcano. The song is “Come Go With Me” by The Del-Vikings and the moves are fierce. Look how free one can be with a little bit of sunlight.
A Los Angeles Kings Game
Nobody is at their best when they’re put on the spot to dance or kiss or whatever at a sporting event while the crowd is watching on the jumbotron, but Hanks’s wife Rita Wilson puts him to shame during this brief public dance performance.
Ellen
T. Hanks can keep it classy in the Riff-Raff room on Ellen, but he can also bump and grind with the audience. Is it that kind of versatility that spoke to Carly Rae Jepsen when she was looking for someone to star in her video?
Tom Hanks: Dancing Weatherman
In this clip from Univision’s Despierta America, Hanks moves the dance party from the guest area to the weather map and continues to shake his money maker alongside Chiquinquira Delgado because Tom Hanks can dance wherever he likes.
City Of Crime
Last, but certainly not least, is Hanks’ performance in the “City of Crime” music video from Dragnet. Paula Abdul choreographed the video — which at one point features Hanks dancing in a cage while wearing shorts — but I like to think that it was more of a collaboration between she and Hanks.
