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Tom Hanks has not yet received honor from the US military.
The 69-year-old Elvis actor was scheduled to win the 2025 Silvanus Sayer Award at a September 25 ceremony hosted by the US Military Academy in West Point, but the event was cancelled by the school’s Alumni Association.
The decision to cancel the event was announced in an email sent to faculty by retired Army Colonel Mark Beeger, president and CEO of the West Point Alumni Association. He explained in his email why the decision was ultimately made.
“This decision will allow the Academy to focus on its core mission of guiding, fighting and preparing its cadets to win as officers in the world’s most deadly unit, the US Army,” he wrote.
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According to the Washington Post, the Veger did not mention whether Hanks would still receive the 2025 Silvanus Sayer Award in a later event or in another form.
People contacted the US military academy in West Point and are in charge of Hanks’ representatives for comments.
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West Point’s US Military Academy announced in June that Hanks would win the Sayer Award. It announced that it will be given annually to outstanding American citizens “exemplifying the personal dedication to ideals expressed in West Point’s motto” given annually to outstanding American citizens. “Duties, honor, nation.”
At the time of the announcement, school board chair Robert A. McDonald explained that Hanks will win some awards for his portrayal of the life of “service members” in his films, including Private Ryan, Forest Gump and the Greyhound’s salvation.
“Tom Hanks has done more than an active portrayal of American service members, the compassion of American veterans, caregivers and their families, and more than the American Space Program and many other Americans,” McDonald said in a statement.
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The Academy also said that after formerly serving as national chair of the D-Day Museum Capital campaign and joining Senator Bob Doll as a national spokesman for the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., Hanks is respected for his military support.
Reacting to the honors of the time, Hanks said the ceremony was the first time he visited the Academy, but that “it makes it humble and meaningful for alumni to be recognized by the institutions that have shaped the history of our nation through selfless service.”
News of the cancelled awards ceremony are in the midst of a transitional period at the US military academy in West Point, which has been facing major changes since Donald Trump’s presidency. According to the Washington Post, Trump’s instructions have led to rollbacks of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across the military and strengthened leadership, curriculum, and faculty scrutiny at the U.S. academies of service.
Hanks is a voice supporter of the Biden administration and supported Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. In 2022, the actor narrated a video for Joe Biden’s inauguration anniversary and promoted the administration’s achievements. Hanks also joined a group of prominent Greek-Americans in October 2024 to sign an open letter in support of Harris’ presidential bid, according to the National Herald.
