No, actor Tom Hanks didn’t die in a ‘fatal’ New Year car accident

A claim that actor Tom Hanks died in a collision is spreading on social media, but like death hoaxes that preceded it, this one is false.

“SHOW BUSINESS TRAGEDY,” a Jan. 1 Facebook post said, sharing two images of Hanks and an image of a burning, upside-down car. 

“Breaking news,” the post said. “Fatal car accident.” 

This post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and Threads.)

The image of the burning car has been online as a stock photo for  years. 

And more importantly, we found no evidence to corroborate the claim that Hanks died. Such a death would draw broad media attention. 

But recent news coverage about the actor focuses on his Pacific Palisades home as wildfires level Los Angeles area communities. They don’t mention his purported death. 

We rate that claim Pants on Fire!