Colin Hanks gets read about 'white men in their 40s'

Colin Hanks believes therapy isn’t optional, especially for “white men in their 40s.”

During a Q&A at a screening of John Candy: I Like Me on October 9, the 43-year-old actor and director said that watching how the late comedian John Candy coped with personal loss reminded him how vital emotional work is for men his age.

Hanks, who directed the new Prime Video documentary produced by Ryan Reynolds, said his research into Candy’s life deepened after discovering that the Uncle Buck star lost his father at age 5, a trauma that shaped his entire life.

“Once I found out that John’s father had died when he was 5, I said, ‘Okay, that’s something that never leaves you,’” Hanks recalled during the event at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn, NY.

“And when I connected with his son, Chris, he mentioned that John had just started doing that therapeutic work that a lot of people do in their 40s — specifically white men in their 40s — they should all be doing therapy.”

Hanks said Candy’s warmth and humour were deeply tied to how he coped with grief and loss. “That outgoing, genuine, gregarious, caring individual — that’s all coping,” he explained. “That’s how he was raised.”

As fame grew, Hanks added, those same traits “started to work against him,” as public expectations weighed heavier. “That was when I said, ‘That’s a story I think is really interesting. I haven’t seen that before,’ ” he said.

Describing Candy as “an everyman,” Hanks said he wanted the film to celebrate both the comedian’s legacy and his humanity.

“I knew John. I had exchanges with John,” Hanks said. “And I definitely wanted to celebrate his career — and the person that he was.”

John Candy: I Like Me premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 4 and is now streaming globally on Prime Video.