Why Tom Hanks ended up pantless in front of the Mona Lisa
Tom Hanks is in a league of his own.
The actor had an unusual experience at one of the most famous museums in the world when he ended up without pants in front of the Mona Lisa.
The bizarre incident went down while Hanks, 68, was filming the 2006 mystery “The Da Vinci Code,” according to Ron Howard, who recounted the hilarious event to a room full of strangers ahead of the weekend.
“All of our grip equipment and camera equipment was in the Mona Lisa room,” Howard, 70, shared during a mini “Happy Days” reunion at MegaCon in Orlando on Friday, February 7, per People magazine.
“The Da Vinci Code” went on to explain that while the cast and crew were on location at the Louvre in Paris, “We were really hurrying, we were behind schedule.”
Howard continued: “And Tom Hanks didn’t have time to go back to his dressing room to change for the next scene. And so I was giving him some notes about what the next scene was going to be and he was changing his pants in front of the Mona Lisa.”
The movie director said he’d never forget seeing the Oscar winner pantless in front of one of the world’s most admired art pieces.
“I said, ‘Wait a minute. This is a moment we have to remember,’” Howard laughed, noting his past work with Hanks has included some strange places. “We’ve been under the water with the mermaid, we’ve been weightless with Apollo 13, and now you’re pants-less with the Mona Lisa.”
Howard has worked with Hanks on five films, including “Splash” (1984), “Apollo 13 (1995) “The Da Vinci Code” (2006), Angels & Demons (2009) and “Inferno” (2016).
The Post reached out to Hanks’ rep for comment.
Hanks recently made headlines after his Pacific Palisades home was spared from the devastating Los Angeles fires that ravaged the city in January.
The Post obtained photos of the “Cast Away” actor’s clifftop mansion that he shares with his wife, Rita Wilson, unscathed from the blaze that wiped out over 6,837 structures and burned 23,448 acres over 24 days.
The Palisades Fire also took the lives of at least 12 people.
Many who lost their homes in the Palisades Fire are suing the city of LA and the LA Department of Water and Power for damages, including “The Hills” stars Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag, whose $3 million property burned down in the blaze, claiming that the lack of water supply is largely responsible for their damages.
