Tom Hanks Dropped from West Point Awards Ceremony

Tom Hanks won’t be receiving an honor from the U.S. Military just yet.

The Elvis actor, 69, was slated to receive the 2025 Sylvanus Thayer Award at a Sept. 25 ceremony hosted by the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, but the event was called off by the school’s alumni association, The Washington Post reported.

The decision to cancel the event was announced in an email sent to faculty by retired Army Col. Mark Bieger, president and chief executive officer of the West Point Association of Graduates, per the outlet. He explained in his email why the decision was ultimately made.

“This decision allows the Academy to continue its focus on its core mission of preparing cadets to lead, fight, and win as officers in the world’s most lethal force, the United States Army,” he wrote.

Bieger did not mention whether Hanks would still receive the 2025 Sylvanus Thayer Award at a later event or in a different format, according to The Washington Post.

PEOPLE has reached out to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and reps for Hanks for comment.

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The U.S. Military Academy at West Point announced in June that Hanks would receive the Thayer Award, which is given annually to an outstanding citizen of the U.S. “whose service and accomplishments in the national interest exemplify personal devotion to the ideals expressed in West Point’s motto: ‘Duty, Honor, Country.’ ”

At the time of the announcement, the school’s board chairman, Robert A. McDonald, explained that Hanks would be given the award, in part, due to his portrayal of the life of a “service member” in several of his films, including Saving Private Ryan, Forrest Gump and Greyhound.

“Tom Hanks has done more for the positive portrayal of the American service member, more for the caring of the American veteran, their caregivers and their family, and more for the American space program and all branches of government than many other Americans,” McDonald said in a statement.

The academy also said that Hanks was being honored for his support of the military, after previously serving as national chairperson of the D-Day Museum Capital Campaign and joining former U.S. Senator Bob Dole as a national spokesperson for the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. 

Reacting to the forthcoming honor at the time, Hanks — who noted at the time that the award ceremony would have been his first time visiting the academy — said in a statement, “To be recognized by an institution whose graduates have shaped our country’s history through selfless service is both humbling and meaningful.”

The news of the canceled awards ceremony comes amid a period of transition at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, which has faced significant changes since Donald Trump’s presidency. Per The Washington Post, Trump’s directives led to the rollback of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across the armed forces, as well as heightened scrutiny of leadership, curricula and faculty at all U.S. service academies.

Hanks was a vocal supporter of the Biden administration, and also endorsed Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. In 2022, the actor narrated a video for Joe Biden‘s inauguration anniversary, touting his administration’s accomplishments. Hanks also joined a group of prominent Greek-Americans in signing an open letter in support of Harris’ presidential bid in October 2024, per The National Herald.