Henry Winkler Reacts to Tom Hanks Feud Rumors

Henry Winkler says the rumors about a feud between him and Tom Hanks are simply not true, and never have been. Whispers of bad blood between the two actors goes back decades now, but Winkler things its pure fabrication. He told TMZ reporters as much when they approached him on the street this week.

“I don’t have a feud with Tom Hanks,” Winkler said, confused when reporters approached him. “It doesn’t matter, because what everybody says and what is true are two different things. I just saw him at the SAG Awards. It was beautiful.”

Winkler said that, when he and Hanks see each other, they do not even bother discussing the rumors that they don’t get along, adding: “why would you give credence to that?”

The rumor being referred to here was that Winkler and Hanks clashed on the set of Turner and Hooch back in 1989. Winkler was originally meant to direct the comedy, but he left before it was finished. Somewhere over the years, it became an accepted story that it was because of his beef with Hanks.

Many fans thought that Winkler himself was adding fuel to this fire back in October, when he appeared on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. There, a caller asked Winkler about Turner and Hooch and about his alleged problems with Hanks.

“I was directing that movie for 13 days, and then I was called into Jeff Katzenberg’s office. He said ‘do you have everything with you? Go home,’” Winkler recalled.

The crowd and Cohen gasped at this news, taking the implication that someone with more pull on the set had asked for Winkler to be removed. With a wry smile, he added: “I got along great with that dog. Love that dog.”

When asked about this on Tuesday, Winkler waved it off.

“You know what, that was just fun. I have no feud,” he said.

Winkler and Hanks’ relationship goes back even further than Turner and Hooch, all the way to Winkler’s heyday as Fonzie on Happy Days. Back then, Hanks made a cameo on the show in a particularly absurd scene where he dressed as a karate student and called Fonzie out. After a lengthy fight, Hanks landed a kick on Fonzie, only for the Fonz to put him back in his place.

Winkler told TMZ he would love to get back on camera with Tom Hanks, even adding that he might have even taken a selfie with Hanks at a Bruno Mars concert some time recently. As for a TV or movie reunion, fans will just have to keep their fingers crossed.