How Stephen Amell is Saving the World

Okay, so the title smacks of sensationalism, I’ll give you that. However, it got your attention, didn’t it? Obviously Stephen Amell has not saved the human race from slowly killing our planet or managed to bring about world peace. What he has managed to do though, is use his fame as an actor and the power of social media to bring awareness to some worthy causes that has nothing to do with some public relations campaign and everything to do with the kind of person he is trying, and succeeding, to be.

Born May 8th 1981, Stephen Amell has worked his way through the acting world for years to get to where he is today. Bouncing between small movies and guest stints on many TV shows, it wasn’t until January of 2012 that his big break came when he was cast as Oliver Queen in the new CW series, Arrow.

Imagine now, if you will, being an actor in his position over the next year or so. The emotional rollercoaster must have been wicked, going from the joy of being on a big comic book oriented show, to outright fear of the show failing, then relief on it being renewed to the pressures of wanting to succeed and not let anyone down.

Not only did he handle it well, he blossomed in his new found stardom. Fan friendly and a hard worker, Amell quickly made many friends and word began to spread about him all over the globe. This is not a exaggeration. When you are a star of a well received TV show that happens to inhabit the world of comics… you have entered a whole new and different level of fandom.

Somewhere along the way, Amell also discovered that connecting with his fans was not only a great way to get the word out about Arrow, but to say thanks for supporting the show. I have seen him in action at conventions such as Toronto’s Fan Expo the past few years and the man just never stops smiling. He takes a moment to acknowledge you, thank you and make you feel just a little more important than you did a few hours ago when you first got in the rather huge line to meet him.

Along with conventions came the discovery of social media and specifically Facebook. Making a Facebook page to connect with fans is nothing new in the entertainment world, but to actually run it yourself? Most don’t have the time or honestly don’t care enough to make that kind of effort or commitment. As of right now, I can think of only George Takei as having a bigger presence on Facebook then Stephen Amell and that is high praise indeed in the social media world.

Amell not only runs his own site, he embraces it, connecting with fans on a whole new level and cementing the feeling of fans everywhere that he really was one of the good guys. He started asking for people to post questions and then would do a live feed and answer as many as he could in the time he had. Fangirls swooned. Geeks and nerds nodded their head in accepting him. The Stephen Amell love in was in full force. Then he changed gears again, which brought even more thanks and love his way.

First he brought awareness to sick kids, helping raise awareness to things such as Saving JoJo and Prayers For Sophie by doing auctions to raise money for their cause. I think even Amell himself was a little awed and humbled at the overwhelming response he received.

Recently, he has joined the fight against cancer by teaming up with the F*ck Cancer campaign. He put together a t-shirt/hoodie design to sell with 100% of the proceeds going to fight the horrible disease. A goal of five hundred shirts was easily passed and at last count over ten thousand shirts had been sold (and counting). It has help connect a younger generation to help aid in this fight while making it fun at the same time.

Stephen Amell and I are not best buddies. In fact, we have never met. Everything I know about the man comes from things I have personally seen at conventions or read about in articles or on social media.

What I can say for sure is here we have someone who had embraced his newfound fame and quickly turned it into something enjoyable and at the same time helpful for those in need. He is someone who has reached out and tried to interact with fans and not simply kept them at arm’s length. Privacy can be a precious thing for actors yet he has managed to stay in touch with his fan base while juggling the role of actor and father.

No one is perfect and we all have bad days, but if more people tried to give even part of the effort that Stephen Amell has, things could only get better not to mention be a helluva lot more fun.

Thanks for all you have done up till now, Mr. Amell. Here’s hoping you continue to share your joy for life and helping others for many years to come.

If you aren’t one of Stephen’s 2.6 million fans on Facebook already, you can become one Right Here!