June 23, 2021
A real-life hero who dresses as Spider-man when visiting sick children in hospital wore his costume as he was greeted by Pope Francis at the Vatican on Wednesday.
While Francis is usually the star of Vatican gatherings, Matteo Villardita caught the attention of the audience lined up during the pontiff’s weekly audience.
Mr Villardita, 28, dons the comic book and movie superhero outfit to lift the spirits of hospitalized children, such as those at the Vatican Pediatric Hospital he planned to visit later Wednesday.
Sweaty under his costume during Rome’s heatwave, Villardita said he asked Pope Francis to pray for the children and their families.
Pictured: Pope Francis shaking hands with Matteo Villardita – a man wearing a Spider-Man fantasy character costume – who performs at hospitals for sick children, at the end of the weekly general audience on June 23, 2021
The man told AP TV that he gave Francis a spare mask, “as a sign, to tell him that through those eyes I see the pain of sick children in hospitals on a daily basis.”
Villardita, with a costumed arm, reached out and touched Francis, who was not wearing any COVID-19 mask, in the back on one arm as he greeted the pontiff.
Villardita said: “It was very exciting because Pope Francis immediately understood my mission. ”
Villardita, 28, dons the comic book and movie superhero outfit to lift the spirits of hospitalized children, like those at the Vatican Pediatric Hospital he planned to visit later Wednesday. Pictured: Pope Frances receives a Spider-man mask on Wednesday
Sweaty under his costume during Rome’s heatwave, Villardita said he asked Pope Francis to pray for the children and their families. Pictured: ‘Spider-man’ waves to the Vatican crowd
Villardita, with a costumed arm, reached out and touched Francis, who was not wearing a COVID-19 mask, in the back on one arm as he greeted the pontiff
Villardita took selfies with young people attending the hearing in a Vatican courtyard.
“But the real superheroes are the children who are suffering and their families who are fighting with so much hope,” Villardita told Vatican media outlet, Vatican News.
The Vatican described Villardita as “a really good superhero” and quoted him as saying that during the long months of pandemic containment in Italy he made more than 1,400 video calls because he was unable to make himself. give in person, to help sick children smile.
Villardita, who has a day job at a terminal shipping company in Italy’s northwestern Liguria region, runs an association for other hospital volunteers who dress up as superheroes. Pictured: Villardita awaits the arrival of Pope Francis on Wednesday
The man told AP TV that he gave Francis a spare mask, “as a sign, to tell him that through those eyes I see the pain of sick children in hospitals on a daily basis.”
Villardita, who has a day job at a terminal shipping company in Italy’s northwestern Liguria region, runs an association for other hospital volunteers who dress up as superheroes.
Even during the Covid-19 pandemic, they continued their work. “I made over 1,400 video calls because I couldn’t go in person,” Villardita told Vatican News.
A former pediatric patient who has undergone several surgeries to treat a congenital disease, Villardita was named an honorary knight in December by Italian President Sergio Mattarella.
The superhero first appeared in 1962 in comics published by Marvel Comics and has gone on to become one of the most popular and commercially successful superheroes, and one of the most recognizable.
Spider-man has featured in several blockbuster movies, many with him as the main character, and is very popular among children.
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