Ryan Reynolds crashing a Seneca class had students screaming
Superstar actor Ryan Reynolds created a flurry of Toronto news coverage this week after he visited Seneca College and surprised some lucky journalism students.
The Deadpool star even faux-anchored the news against a green screen in the Sports and Entertainment Reporting class, reading from a prompter about the day's Dr. Phil-related headlines.
Thank you for the tour, @SenecaCollege. Wish something like this existed when I was starting out. #SenecaProud pic.twitter.com/6dSiCoFLZH
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) February 1, 2023
In a video viewed thousands of times, Reynolds can be seen reading from a prompter with a coffee in hand, asking his fellow co-anchor if she was following along.
That lucky co-anchor, Naomi Proulx, has shared more details about her incredible moment with Mr. Reynolds to blogTO.
The college student said her class was told to expect a special guest to make an appearance during the reporting class, but nobody dreamed it would be the beloved Hollywood star.
"It was just a wave of shock seeing him at the door. I didn't know what was happening, why he was there, and if what I was seeing was even real! My classmates were all in shock. We were laughing and screaming all together, as you can hear in the video," she said.
Ryan Reynolds surprised a @SenecaCollege journalism class and took over their broadcast. 😱
— Etalk (@etalkCTV) February 2, 2023
In a tweet about his visit, @VancityReynolds wrote, “Thank you for the tour, Seneca College. Wish something like this existed when I was starting out.’ ❤️
(🎥: @SenecaCollege) pic.twitter.com/5WqN41OxG6
The class was in the middle of doing a mock live newscast and Reynolds immediately jumped in.
"He came in and just started reading the teleprompter like a professional," said Proulx.
Thank you @VancityReynolds for visiting @SenecaMedia classes today. Drop-in anytime! #SenecaProud pic.twitter.com/hLWoYVWkbG
— TinaCortese (@tmrgame25) February 1, 2023
Reynolds was scheduled for a 30-minute tour of the entire Seneca campus, but popped into many classes and engaged with surprised students along the way.
The broadcast journalism program coordinator for Seneca, Bill Hutchinson, said Reynolds was browsing the TV studios and animation classes for his own production company, Maximum Effort.
Lucky for Proulx, it was her turn to tackle the daunting anchoring task, which immediately became even more nerve-wracking when it became clear who her new partner was.
How cool is this - a drop in from @VancityReynolds. Our students will never be the same. @SenecaCollege @SenecaMedia #journalism pic.twitter.com/DYk8b4Ab6H
— Tom Hayes (@TomHayesNews) February 1, 2023
"I was so nervous! I never thought there would be a day where I would be Ryan Reynolds' co-anchor. I was star-struck the whole time! I'm happy at the end I managed to bring myself together to read the end of the news segment with him."
As for her impressions of the Van Wilder star, Proulx said Mr. Reynolds was very courteous and kind.
"From the short time we got to spend together, you could tell he was genuinely a humble guy. He walked into the classroom like he was just another journalism student."
Hours after Reynolds left the Seneca campus, he was spotted at an Italian restaurant in Unionville, Il Postino.
Now, we're busy looking for Reynolds' next stop on his Ontario sightseeing tour.
Naomi Proulx
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