We’re told to never meet our heroes, right? Many of us tend to build up our favorite stars in our heads, imagining them to be these ‘perfect’ people who are as charismatic as they are kind. But putting them on a pedestal can lead to a shock when you do meet them and the reality of who they are clashes against your sky-high expectations . However, some folks really do live up to the hype in the best possible way!
Members of the super popular r/AskReddit online community shared some of their most positive celebrity encounters ever, from meeting Robin Williams to having a friendly chat with Adam Driver. Check out their wholesome stories below.
We got in touch with the author of the viral thread, redditor u/Former-Tadpole , and they were happy to share their thoughts about fan and celebrity interactions. Check out Bored Panda’s interview with them below!
Dolly Parton. She’s an incredible person. When I was a kid, my grandma was an in home care nurse for a sweet paralyzed man. He loved Dolly. She was in town for a concert and someone had reached out to her, she came to the house and sat with him and my grandma for two hours. My grandma cooked and she ate every bite and sat around with them acting like anyone else who was visiting would. She’s just really a lovely person.
ClarityByHilarity , nbc Report
bentnotbroken96 , Conan O’Brien Report
Mr. Rogers. I lived in his neighborhood during the summers (I really did live in Mr. Rogers’ neighborhood!). He and his family were authentically lovely people.
Foxglove166 , pbs Report
Michael Keaton- he was filming a movie in our neighborhood. While all the other actors would run to their trailers between scenes, he would sit on the curb and BS with anyone who wanted to. Very down to earth guy.
Cultural_Antelope_95 , Fox Searchlight Pictures Report
Stephen King. Ran into him at a gas station as I was pulling in to gas up, he pointed to one of the pumps and said “that one’s out of order”. It is not a thrilling tale, just a hero author saving me a few minutes of time going to a gas pump that wasn’t working. Everyone who has lived in maine probably has an identical story. King is always in random places being a solidly normal and decent dude.
SeriesBusiness9098 , cbs Report
Never met him, but Steve Carrell has a video where he explains why he hates Ryan Gosling. It’s because in his free time Gosling spends a lot of time doing charity work. No cameras, not social media posts, no reporters. He doesn’t do it for clout, he does it because he’s a genuinely good person who recognizes how fortunate he is and wants to help others. Ryan Gosling is the type of incredibly wholesome person that makes you feel like you feel like s**t because you see him and feel like you need to do more to follow his example. And that’s why Steve Carrell hates Ryan gosling.
Misdirected_Colors , Warner Bros. Pictures Report
Encountered Robin Williams in an airport years ago. He was every bit as funny and kind as you’d hope, making jokes and genuinely asking about my day. That encounter still brings a smile to my face.
Live-You2983 Report
Terry Prachett on one his new book signing tours at a small bookstore. Really nice talk and meet and greet during the signing. Gahan Wilson, cartoonist, at a Comicon. He took time to draw something for everyone in line. He talked with both my daughters and I have a drawing of them by him. Really genuine and nice person.
oceanswim63 , abc Report
Meeting Sir Ian McKellen after a stage performance was a dream come true. He was gracious, witty, and incredibly humble, taking time to sign autographs and speak with fans. It was a magical experience.
Competitive-Role7985 Report
Eddie the Dog from Frasier (real name Moose). I helped put on a giant dog festival in Seattle in 2000 and Eddie was a special guest. He was so god damned chill; even with hundreds of people wanting to pet him. Not sure why I thought he might be high strung but not at all. Later we went up the space needle with his handler and had a lovely dinner.
lazespud2 Report
Neil Gaiman was utterly lovely. It was supposed to be a signing only, no personalization, but he personalized both my books and my friend’s without us asking and was overall just very nice.
melloponens , British Library Report
Dave Grohl. Ran into him at the Northridge mall all by himself and he totally stopped for a minute while I gushed like a star struck 9 year old. Super cool guy! Chino Moreno also. Hung out at the pool in Vegas before thier set and he totally just talked with me like nothing for a hlaf hour. Both bad a*s singers and super cool guys!
Softsocksearcher , Foo Fighters Report
I got to interview Dick Van Dyke once, having admired his work for years, and he was every inch as charming, friendly, voluble, and modest as you could hope.
AnotherPint Report
Willie Nelson. After a long show in a big honkytonk bar, he stayed after to meet anyone who wanted to meet him.
Whatever-ItsFine Report
Rick Astley. He is the kindest, most lovely guy. I got to meet him backstage as I had a connection with one of his team at the time and I hung out together with him and his band, he gave me wine and offered me toast! 10/10 would recommend meeting Rick Astley.
AussieGirl27 , Rick Astley Report
Saw Michelle Obama at a book signing, and she was every bit as elegant and insightful in person. She made time to have a real conversation with each person, making the experience unforgettable.
Careless_Self_4623 Report
Stan Lee he was so humble and loved every single one of his fans. He used to call me She-Hulk whenever he saw me.
Goddessviking86 , Conan O’Brien Report
Adam Driver came to see us when I was stationed in Korea. Nicest dude, made sure to meet and talk with each of us that showed up.
Luet_box , Netflix Report
Keanu Reeves in a jam packed subway car. Who almost knocked me over as we were climbing the steps to the exit.
anon , summit entertainment Report
Betty White. Who’d of thunk it, right? /s Met here at a charity fundraiser for a guide dog school and she couldn’t have been more gracious. Took time to speak with most everyone in the room. Oh yeah, Charles Barkley is a pretty good dude also.
kcfdr9c Report
Vincent Price. He came to my university to lecture and afterward stood in the doorway of the men’s dressing room of the auditorium talking to us for about an hour while we stood in the hallway. If it hadn’t been later than 11:00 p.m., I think he would have kept talking. I don’t think he ever met a stranger, and he was the nicest most approachable human being. But very very tall. And very very elegant. And entirely on his own. No assistant, no manager.
Initial-Shop-8863 Report
Ewan McGregor was as nice as you’d ever hope for. Chatted about his brother and flying for a half hour, as easy as could be.
ReasonablyConfused , nbc Report
Roddy Piper, I loved wrestling growing up and Roddy was my hero. Flash forward 30 years and I see him in a pub in Ireland of all places. I decide that I’m gonna go talk to him, which I wouldn’t usually do. I get myself psyched up and tell myself to be cool and not be weird about it. I walked up, introduced myself. He grabbed my hand really hard pulled me in close to him and looked me up and down (I’m a big guy) and said “with you by my side I could have taken them all”…. I giggled like a schoolgirl. He then chatted took a pic with me and was lovely. Fantastic memory.
mysevenyearitch Report
Weird Al and Fred Armisen. Both were some of the nicest, down-to-earth gents I ever met.
Both_Version Report
Eddie Vedder is one of the nicest humans on the planet. Met him a few times and he is just so kind and warm and funny. And such a huge music fan. David Evans, aka The Edge is the same.
dressinbrass , Pearl Jam Report
Henry Rollins. At the time I was teaching a college writing course. We looked at Henry’s, admittedly bad, poetry and read some of his prose stuff as well as listened to Rollins Band songs to discuss the lyrics. He came to a nearby town to do one of his spoken word shows. I emailed him to see if he’d do a Q&A with my students, not expecting him to answer. He did. He said he could meet with us for 30 minutes after the show. He did just that, answering all my students’ questions, and the thing was he answered each of them with long, thoughtful answers. Nothing was canned or cliche. Then he let us take a pic with him. The man was everything I hoped my celebrity hero would be.
HoraceBenbow , cbs Report
Keanu Reeves. Popped up in a Starbucks in San Fran. Totally chill and awesome dude, but had to dip before word got out he was around. I felt bad after that starstruck wore off. Imagine not being able to linger because you are always pursued. Like Battlestar Galactica.
drdildamesh Report
My dad and I met Eric Idle (from Monty Python) last May at a bookstore in Stratford, Ontario. Long story short, he was absolutely delightful, especially given that we were interrupting his day. Took a selfie with my dad, and chatted with me for a little bit and shook my hand. It was especially nice given some of the rumours that John Cleese is a bit of a prick. He just had like this aura of pleasantness to him. Just happy to be there, and happy to say Hi.
WhiskyTangoNovember Report
Tony Curtis Met him in the reception of the Beverly Hills Hilton one quiet afternoon in 2008. He was in a wheelchair, and had his wife and PA with him (both attractive blondes). My wife and I walked over and asked for his autograph. He smiled and said he’d be delighted to. He then took a pen and paper and did a sketch, signed and dated it. He recognised we were from the UK with our accents, and the 3 of us chatted whilst he completed the sketch. He then kissed my wife’s hand, and shook my hand. Despite age catching up with him, he was still a good looking fella with piercing blue eyes. And he was a complete gentleman. A moment we will never forget.
DaddyJaymo Report
Jon Stewart. Met him. Has a brief chat. He was hilarious, smart, curious and gracious.
Utterlybored Report
Billy Connolly. He is the sweetest man.
globalcitizen35 Report
Tony Iommi, guitarist for Black Sabbath. He came in to record an interview at a place I worked (this was early 2000s), and he was nice enough to sign my copy of Paranoid. He opened up the gatefold to sign it and he quipped, “Oh, I expected some seeds to fall out of this.” Just freaking made my day, especially since he was the main reason I picked up the stupid guitar in the first place!
Stupid_Guitar , rhino Report
Hulk Hogan is not a great human being, but I’ve never seen anyone be so kind to their fans. People approached him as his family was leaving dinner, and everyone who walked by also stopped. He sent his family home and spent over 3 hours talking to every single person that came up. It was wild. John Cena was exactly as nice and caring as you would expect him to be. Just a humble and caring guy.
goofy1771 , Warner Bros Pictures Report
I randomly had a beer with Sufjan Stevens once. Very quiet and polite. I asked about his music and told him about my cooking and just food stuff in general. He says to me, “you have a real gift with food… perhaps you should pursue that.” A year later I was accepted in the culinary school of my choice. I graduated and had a successful career as a baker and pastry chef (for a few years until disability robbed me from this kinda work). Woulda never done that without his kind nudge!
Throw-away17465 , Sufjan Stevens Report
Most of the cast of Lucifer :) they’re all lovely and so down to earth.
Distinct-Knee9898 , netflix Report
I met Susan Sarandon. While she wasn’t a hero of mine per se, I still grew up with my mom watching Rocky Horror (among many of her other films), so meeting her was a huge deal. She was nothing but incredibly kind and generous with her time. Absolutely terrific human being.
chrisdurand Report
Had a chance to speak with Emma Watson at a UN event. She was incredibly intelligent and gracious, taking the time to discuss her work with gender equality. Far from being disappointed, I left even more inspired.
FootballEffective228 Report
Robert Carlyle, he stayed at a hotel I worked at and come and chatted with me at the concierge desk and was just a genuinely nice humble guy.
Jaxxs90 Report
Kevin Smith. It was at a London comicon, and I’m usually not all that fussed by meeting celebrities at cons because they’re never going to be at their best and just going through the motions meeting hundreds of rabid fans but I had something I wanted to share with Kev so queued, got him to sign a comic I had bought years before in his store in New Jersey, and told him the story. I had read on Kev’s Facebook page recently that one of the guys who worked at the Secret Stash had died and I realised it was the guy who had served me. We had had a really nice chat that day and it stuck in my mind. Kev told me of the circumstances in which he had died and thanked me for telling him the story. He always struck me as a straight up, honest guy and this only reaffirmed that.
FlameFeather86 Report
Kari Byron from Mythbusters. She was shooting a segment at my workplace and was very down to earth and kind. Brightened up everyone’s day.
FjordReject Report
Mike Flanagan (horror writer/director). He was so kind and gracious and actually took the time to explain his intention with some of my favorite scenes from his work. I’ll be a lifelong fan because of what a nice person he is.
BunniesnBroomsticks Report
Rod Gilbert “Mr Ranger”. 1982 HOF hockey player. I’d only seen his highlights as a kid. His number was the only one hanging in the rafters at MSG for years. Met him in the parking lot after a fundraiser golf outing I was working. Our cars were parked next to each other. He and I were about the last to leave. Wasn’t sure it was him so I asked, never saw him in person before only on TV. He shook my hand and we chatted a few minutes. Like people do while changing outfits , shoes, having a beer in the lot after a round. We talked about hockey, family and work. He was more interested in knowing about me and my love of the game and the Rangers. He was everything built up to be. He pulled a 8x10 glossy out of a box he had in his car and began to sign. The pen poked through, and he wanted to sign a new one. I told him I wanted that one - it was real. He finished writing with a very personal inscription. When he passed a few years ago it was different than the feelings I’d ever had over a celebrity death.
JAFO2WCT Report
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