Actor Ryan Reynolds surprises young Deadpool fan with birthday message

Photo: Screengrab

The look on Damien's face says it all.

Damien Smith will likely never forget turning nine.

On Nov. 21, the Shuswap boy received hundreds of birthday cards and gifts from complete strangers, as well as a virtual birthday message from Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds.

"I heard about your story. ... I heard you're a big fan of Deadpool," Reynolds says in the clip. "I relate to your story a lot because I also went to a new school when I was a kid, a couple of them actually, and I remember how alienating that felt and I remember how alone I felt."

The family moved from Coquitlam to Canoe in late September; a move and not really knowing anyone in his new town made Damien feel like his birthday would be a lonely one, his mom Tiffanie tells Castanet. She says he has always struggled with his self-confidence.

He expressed those feelings one day in October while doing dishes.

"His dad's like, 'Are you excited? Your birthday's coming up. What do you want for your birthday?'" Tiffanie recalls. "He's just like, 'I don't want anything. I'm going to be all by myself. I have no friends out here. I don't make friends anyways. No one cares.'"

That's when her husband, Tom, shared their son's struggles on Facebook and put a call out for birthday cards. 

The post went viral.

"The status got shared and shared," Tiffanie says. "Then... it was all over the world."

It caught the attention of Reynolds, who got in touch with Tiffanie and Tom. He actually sent his virtual greeting last month, Tiffanie says.

"Now, I had to keep this a secret for a month and a half," she chuckles.

In the meantime, birthday cards and packages started arriving at their doorstep daily. To date, Damien has received close to 1,300 birthday wishes and gifts, from places like Austria and Australia.

And they're still coming.

"We just got 10 today and like three packages," Tiffanie says. "It's insane. Every time we get one, I'm like, 'No way!'"

Damien got his gifts and Hollywood greeting a little earlier than his birthday (Nov. 24). The surprise was done this past Saturday. 

In a video capturing his reaction, Damien looks shocked when he sees Reynolds on the television screen.

"In his words, he was shocked and his whole body was frozen. It was neat to see his facial expression change when he realized who was on the TV," Tiffanie says.

Damien, with tears in his eyes, then goes to give his mom a hug.

"He has a new found confidence," she tells Castanet. "We're so grateful and proud of how fast the world came together. In this time, when the whole world is so divided, how quickly they came together for somebody they don’t even know."

You can watch the surprise below.