30 Times Celebrities Surprised Everyone By Being Incredibly Kind To 'Regular' People

Stories of celebrities showing genuine kindness and humility, reminding us that fame doesn't always disconnect people from their true selves.

Damjan

• Published in Interesting
• November 9, 2023

A Reddit user named u/LeCrowing shared a nice story about meeting the famous actor Kevin Bacon at Spooky World. This post became popular, and many other people shared their own stories about meeting celebrities who were nice and down-to-earth.

These stories are a nod that not all famous people act fancy or distant. Some, like Kevin Bacon, are friendly and treat their fans kindly. They show that they're just regular people, too.

u/LeCrowing's story inspired others to share their experiences with celebrities who were kind and helpful. These celebrities weren't just actors but also musicians, athletes, and famous people from different fields.

What all these stories had in common was the celebrities' genuine kindness. They took time to connect with their fans, lend a hand, or share a laugh. These stories remind us that even when people become famous, they can still be caring and friendly.

In a world where we often hear complicated stories about celebrities, it's nice to know that some remain true to themselves and treat others with respect. They remind us that being kind is important, no matter how famous you are.

So, even though fame can be glamorous, we shouldn't forget these heartwarming stories. They show us that behind the fame and attention, there are celebrities who are genuinely good people. We should appreciate and celebrate them for their kindness.

1. Adam Sandler

"A few years back, my grandmother (then about 75 years old) and Adam Sandler's father had back-to-back chemo appointments in Boston. Every week she would see Adam Sandler, in sunglasses, come with his father to chemo.

Her cancer was stage III at this point and she was under a great deal of stress, and honest to God, Adam Sandler used to rub her back and ease her nerves before going in. Unfortunately, his Dad died that year, but my grandmother made a full recovery. Never really liked Adam Sandler's stuff that much, but the way he treated my sick, elderly grandmother was incredible.

I hope this doesn't get buried, I tell this story all the time and nobody believes me. But it really, really happened. What a great guy."

2. Keanu Reeves

"I remember seeing Keanu Reeves in New York a long time ago when I was a young (and probably very annoying) pre-teen. I yelled out, 'Yo, Neo!' and then I mimicked the bullet-dodge motion from The Matrix. He looked back at me, laughed, and mirrored the same move in acknowledgment. It's such a great memory because I feel like anyone would have been justified in getting annoyed and shrugging a kid off, but instead, he was a good sport and humored me. I'll never forget it."

3. Gene Wilder

"When I was a kid, like 2 or 3, I often saw an old man at a grocery store with a small, white dog. The man came up to me one day and handed me a basket. He said I could walk the dog while filling up the basket with candy (which he later paid for).

This became the routine whenever I saw that man at the grocery store. Walk the dog, get candy. That man was Gene Wilder. I got candy from Willy Wonka himself".

4. Morgan Freeman

"We're both from the same state (Mississippi). I was having lunch near his home town when I noticed him. He took the time to talk to me, despite my epic fan grin, and paid for my food before he left. Best lunch I ever had. So in conclusion I met God."

5. Steve Buscemi

"Steve Buscemi meets my friend every year on 9/11 at her dad's old firehouse, since her dad died on 9/11 — they go out to dinner with a huge group of people, but he always makes sure he spends a lot of time talking to my friend. The last few years I went with her, and the first conversation I had with him really showed his character.

I forget the word-for-word conversation, but we were joking around and he said something like, 'So, how do you know [your friend]?' 'Oh, we met through a camp for people whose parents died on 9/11.' Do you know what his response was? 'Well, then, I guess that makes you family' — he was the nicest person."

6. Brendan Fraser

"When I was eight or so, my grand parents and I ran into Brendan Fraser in LA while he was shooting MonkeyBone. I wanted an autograph, but I didn't have any paper or marker, and neither did he. He personally took my address down in his BlackBerry, and later mailed me a signed headshot.

My parents told me to write him a thank you note back, so I did. He wrote back and thanked me for the thank you note. A little over a year later, out of nowhere, he mailed me a signed copy of MonkeyBone on DVD."

7. Lebron James

"I was at a shoe store in cleveland about 4 years ago. . I think it was Finishline. And I'm looking at the new Lebron shoes, (mind you that I'm only 18 at the time), and a huge shadow appears over me. And i turn around, and it was Lebron James standing there.

He smiled and said "you want my new shoes" I stumbled over my words for a few seconds then said yes I think I'm going to buy a pair right now. He then asked me my size, went up to the front desk and bought me 2 pairs. 1 he signed, and he said the other was for me to practice my post moves in. One of the best days of my life."

8. Keanu Reeves

"Was at a coffee shop and had no place to sit, a man said please join me here. I sat and realized it was him and talked about comic books for about 30 min. Normal as can be."

9. George Takei

"He stopped a press conference I was observing to meet a little boy and sign his doll because he was sick and going home, and the meet-and-greet wasn't scheduled until later. The reporters looked a little put off, but George gave that little kid 100% of his attention for two minutes or so. I could see the kid's day was made."

10. Ice T

"Ice T was on the same flight as me, my mom, and my sister when I was younger. My sister needed help getting her bags off the carousel but I was too busy reading Harry Potter and basically told her to f**k off.

Ice T comes walking over, shoots me the worst look, then grabs all my sister's bags and helps carry them to our car. I learned a good lesson that day; never help anyone because it's easier to let a celebrity do it for you."

11. Lady Gaga

"I sat down with her and had someone take a picture of us. I complimented her on her show but I was overall super nervous and flustered. I quickly got up to walk away but she grabbed me, told me to sit down, and demanded we talk some more and take a few more pictures. It was glorious."

12. Rowan Atkinson

"Rowan Atkinson and his family were in the same heli-ski group as me and my family in Chamonix, France. (It was a private group company, but the guide we hired had a pretty bad injury, so they had to join groups.)

My family was really excited, as we all really love Blackadder, Thin Blue Line, Mr.Bean, etc. When he, his wife, his daughter, and my family first met up, we introduced ourselves as huge fans of his, and if he would mind if we got his autograph.

He said he'd do us one better, and take us out to dinner after we finished skiing. That was the funniest dinner I've ever had. tldr; Went skiing with Mr.Bean in France and he took my family out to dinner afterward."

13. Tom Hanks

"Was at a friend's wedding at the Wynn in Las Vegas and was taking pictures in the Atrium (also the VIP Entrance). He emerged from the double doors behind our group and said "Hey! Is this a wedding? Can I be in the pictures?" Everyone was quite [angry] until we realized it was Tom Hanks. He took pictures with the whole group and was a general all-around great guy."

14. Robin Williams

"I played paintball with Robin Williams and made it a point to run straight to his bunker and shoot him right in the face, he was going to be my prize. He was a good sport about it and spent the rest of the day giving me a running commentary/riff track on the game as it progressed. Really nice guy considering I just shot paint into his face."

15. James Earl Jones

"Darth Vader, aka James Earl Jones, is from my hometown in Michigan. I was working at my grandpa's fly shop in a small, neighboring village in the same county — as a reward for my hard work, my grandpa took me out to breakfast the morning of my last day of work at the most popular inn of the area.

Because it was an early Friday morning, there weren't too many people there — just us, one couple, and an older man with glasses in a booth reading a newspaper. As we started eating, the older man started reading his newspaper aloud in a very familiar voice — we both turned around to see who it was, it was James Earl Jones!

My grandpa then called, 'Hey, Jimmy, long time no see! How 'bout you come over here and sit with us?' He came over, introduced himself to me, and we shook hands — as they got into their conversation, I learned that my grandpa was really good friends with Jones in elementary school before he moved out of the area.

His voice sounded like gold, and he was a really sociable and humorous person — when we had to leave, he paid for our breakfast and then signed the daily newspaper he had been reading and gave it to me."

16. Johnny Depp

"Met Johnny Depp and didn't realize it until the next day, and he was awesome and shook my hand and everything. I was at Comic-Con and saw an amazing Captain Jack Sparrow. I complimented him because his costume looked exactly like the one from the movie.

He replied by shaking my hand and then asking me, in the perfect voice "What costume?" and then swaggering off with the same sort of walk he used in the movie. I thought I had just met the best cosplayer ever, then I saw on the news the next morning that Johnny Depp had been at the convention walking the floor in the original movie costume."

17. Joe Biden

"When Joe Biden was a Senator I accidentally walked in on him while he was in the stall of an Amtrak bathroom. He sat there awkwardly for a second and then said "I'd shake your hand but I don't think either of us want that."

18. Ryan Gosling

"Ryan Gosling paid for my parking on Hollywood Blvd once. We had parked in the same parking lot. He was leaving and we were arriving and I struck up a convo with him real quick. He asked where I was from and why I was there/who I was with. (Spring Break, 9 friends, 2 cars). And he was like "Oh you guys have 40 bucks to drop on just parking? Must be loaded"

I chuckled and was about to say something back and he just said the coolest thing to me. "Don't worry about parking today man, I'll cover you all for the weekend. Have a fun spring break!" It was so cool. He is JUST as nice in real life as you think he would be. Here's the Proof, I'm in the White."

19. Margaret Thatcher

"I met Margaret Thatcher, briefly, and was really surprised at how polite she was in person. She only left shallow claw marks when shaking my hand, and latched onto my neck in the gentlest of fashions when she had to feed halfway through the conference we were attending."

20. Marilyn Manson

"This was 2000. My brother had cancer and got the chance to meet him. He brought my brother all sorts of memorabilia and sat and chatted to him for a few hours, playing TV games with him, playing guitar, even reading Beano comics. All in the comfort of my own home. My brother passed away 3 weeks later and was in his M.M t-shirt when he passed."

21. Kourtney Kardashian

"She was pregnant with her first kid when she came into the homeless shelter I was volunteering at. No cameras, she was there by herself to play with the kids, even stayed after to help me sweep and clean."

22. Paul Rudd

"I was at a Decemberists concert, and in between opening acts, I headed to the women's bathrooms. Paul Rudd was standing outside of the bathroom, obviously waiting for someone. Do you ever have one of those moments where your mouth just says words without the permission of your brain?

Yeah. As I passed by Paul Rudd, I did finger guns at him and said, "Hanging out in front of the women's bathroom? That's a good way to pick up women." and kept walking. I could hear him laughing as I entered the bathroom.

I was torn between being pleased that I made him laugh and being mortified that I was such a dork. When I left the bathroom, he saw me and started laughing again, so I went over to him and said I had no idea why I said that.

So we had a little laugh together, and had a nice little chat. He was a really nice guy, not even as a celebrity, just as a cool dude. Although thinking back on it, no woman came out of the bathroom and came over to him while he was waiting, so I still don't know why he was hanging around outside of the bathrooms. Maybe he WAS picking up women."

23. Tom Hanks

"Tom Hanks doesn't just seem like the nicest guy. I was a nanny for a Hollywood family, met hundreds of A-listers. Most of them were self-obsessed wankers, but Tom took the time to shake my hand and made sure he learned my name. He never forgot it. Also he would always say "There's a snake in my boot!" for the youngest of my charges, which obviously made him laugh hysterically."

24. David Bowie

"Don't know if it's cheating since this celebrity is a friend of the family. When I was in 6th grade, I was given an assignment to do a biography on a celebrity and dress up as them when presenting. I chose to do David Bowie since I love his music and he's a nice guy. My dad told David of my assignment and he called the house one day to discuss.

He told me a bit about his work and his past (the PG version, of course) and was excited to hear how it goes. Fast forward to the presentation and I dress as Ziggy Stardust. I get nervous, stumble over my words, etc.

Later, David called again to follow up and asked me if I did his British accent. I confess I didn't and he seemed disappointed and laughed it off. Best school work I had to do. TL;DR: David Bowie helped me with my homework."

25. Will Ferrell

"I was working at the Hotel del Coronado in San Diego one summer in the private side of the resort. It was during Comic-Con, and a lot of the famous people speaking at the convention were staying at the Del — being the five star resort that we were, all the employees were told that if anyone asked a celebrity for an autograph or picture (or even talked to them outside of job duties), they would be promptly fired.

One guy decided it was worth it and was fired on the spot, and I think Will Ferrell must have heard about it — he spent the next day or two at the hotel asking employees if he could give them an autograph and take a picture with him (he didn't have a camera, so the employees would use theirs and email the pictures to him later). He was a super cool guy."

26. Paris Hilton

"My car broke down on an autobahn in Germany. Managed to coast to sort of layby thing with a burger van and toilets in it. I was in a bad state because I can't speak any German, my phone had no credit and I didn't have my breakdown details with me so I had no idea what to do.

I unsuccessfully asked the guy in the burger van for help and he apparently didn't speak English so rather pathetically I started to cry. Then this big old American guy appeared and offered me a cup of tea in his motor home (it wasn't proper tea but that's besides the point). In the van was another guy and friggin Paris Hilton! I kid ye not.

She was sweet and made me a sandwich and gave me a hug then proceeded to talk to me for 30mins about some old radio bits she'd bought in some show in Freidrichshafen. I didn't understand most of it. She said that when she wasn't working she liked to drive about Europe going to radio and air shows as if she put a hat on nobody ever recognised her.

Then they towed me to a garage at about 40km per hour (scarey stuff on the autobahn). Oh yeah and she sat in my car and asked if it was ok before she smoked. TL:DNR Paris Hilton saved me in Germany and towed me to a garage

27. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson

"He was walking out of the restroom at my work place. I commented, "I smelled what The Rock was cooking" as we passed each other in the hallway. He turned back and gave me the People's Eyebrow. Actually got to chat with him a little while, and led him to the edit bay that he was looking for."

28. Misha Collins

"In Feb. 2017, I was in Nashville for a Supernatural convention — I was pretty bummed that I couldn't afford a photo with Misha Collins. The night before the convention, I was walking around downtown Nashville playing Pokémon Go and sure enough, Misha Collins came walking right towards me on the sidewalk!

He could tell by my reaction that I was a fan, so he opened his arms and said, 'Come on, give me a hug if you'd like!' He was soooo sweet and friendly — we stood there talking for at least 15 minutes, and even took this selfie! (My son in the ring sling is named Jensen, which Misha got a big kick out of).

I just appreciated that he had zero obligation to be nice, and he was talking to me as if I were an old friend of his instead."

29. Wil Wheaton

"I met Wil Wheaton at a book signing here in Seattle, and we shot the s**t about homebrewing mead. Great guy."

30. Arnold Schwarzenegger

"Met him at "The Arnold" in 1996 and at a bodybuilding gym in 2000. No cameras and he was still super motivating. He told everyone how its obvious how hard they work and how great they look. He signed pictures for kids and smoked cigars like a chimney. Great guy. 100% real man."

31. Muhammad Ali

"Cool Ali story from the 1980's: My Dad has been a huge Ali fan since his early days. One time in the '84 or '85, Dad was on a plane flight with my older sister (who was a newborn). He hears someone say "You have a beautiful baby girl" from the aisle. Lo and behold it's Muhammad Ali. Apparently Ali asked to hold her and kissed her forehead."

The stories shared by u/LeCrowing and others about their meetings with friendly celebrities are like a breath of fresh air. This is especially nice in a world where we usually hear dramatic and exaggerated news about famous people.

These stories show us that becoming famous doesn't have to make someone act worse. It's nice to know that some famous folks stay down-to-earth and caring.

We should cheer for these celebrities who use their fame to spread positivity and make an effort to connect with their fans on a personal level. They're like role models, proving that being kind and humble can go hand in hand with success and being well-known.

In a world where we often hear about the bad sides of being famous, let's not forget to appreciate and support these celebrities who remind us that being a good person should always be important, no matter how famous you are.

Damjan