20 Times Famous People Turned Into Real-life Superheroes And Saved People's Lives

If you think that celebrities always cut a wide berth to ordinary people, you are wrong. Many celebrities are very close to us and even contribute to the social community in spades. In some cases, they even become heroes in the real life to rescue strange people who’re in trouble.
That’s right! Some celebs not only embody heroes on screen, but they’re also uber-kind and “cool” in real life that literally saves the lives of people in jeopardy in seconds. Tom Cruise is a great example, who not just performs top-notch rescue scenes in movies, but he swiftly does that in the real life several times.
In addition to Tom Cruise, some big names like Demi Moore, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, etc bravely pull others out of risk. In this post, we enlist 20 times famous people who go above and beyond to rescue someone from danger. They’re actually worth our admiration and expectation for what they’ve done. Let's scroll down and check out times when celebrities become heroes in real life!

#1 Mark Harmon saved two youths from a burning car.

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According to a Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman, “Leroy Jethro Gibbs” in NCIS broke the window of a burning car and rescued two teenage boys after crashing near his Brentwood home in 1996.
After 7 years, one of these 2 boys, Colin Specht spoke to CBS New York about his gratitude for Harmon: "There's no way I can repay him, except for pay it forward, and I try to do that in my life,"

#2 Tom Cruise saved Elisabeth Shue's life when filming a scene for the 1988 film "Cocktail" by stopping her from going towards spinning chopper blades.

Source: Paramount Pictures

Camera operator Bill Bennett stated in 2021 that Shue started to approach whirling helicopter blades on set, which appear undetectable as they spin but "will kill you instantly". He shared that on a private Facebook page for stories from movie and television sets called Crew Stories."Tom is a pilot, rated in both airplanes and helicopters, and instantly saw the danger. He lunged after her, but only was able to grab her legs, tackling her to the ground," Bennett wrote. "He rolled her over, dragging her at the same time, and you could see the momentary anger on her face while she was yelling 'Why did you do that?'"
He added: "But by that time he is pointing at the tail rotor which is now a couple feet away, screaming at her that she almost died. At that point, she turned white, and he pulled her back towards the front of the helicopter and they walked away. All of us in the helicopter was quite shaken up by the close call, but there was nothing to be said. Tom had, in that instant, truly saved her life."

#3 In 1996, Cruise became a hero once more when he assisted the victim of a hit-and-run.

Source: Getty/Kevin Winter

Another time Cruise saved another life is in 1996 when he assisted aspiring actress Heloisa Vinhas who was struck by a car in Santa Monica while attempting to board a bus. Not only did Cruise have someone dial 911, but he then followed her to the hospital and, upon discovering she had no insurance, paid the $7,000 emergency room tab.

#4 Demi Moore reacted to a suicidal Twitter user.

Source: Getty Images / Jason Kempin

A woman revealed her intention to commit herself on Twitter in 2009. Moore opted to reply. She responded, "Hope you're joking," reposted the remark, then called the police.
The San Jose Police Department was contacted by Twitter users who saw the discussion, and they were able to trace the message to a 48-year-old lady. Sergeant Ronnie Lopez told CNN that although she was unharmed, she needed assistance.

#5 Leonardo DiCaprio helped to rescue a man who had been treading water for 11 hours after falling off a cruise ship.

Source: AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko

On New Year's Eve 2019, while sailing with girlfriend Camila Morrone and pals in St. Barts, DiCaprio's boat's captain learned that a guy had gone overboard nearby.
A source informed People in January 2020 that "Leo and his friends and their boat captain decided to join the search and their efforts resulted in helping save a man's life."
The man was reportedly located by DiCaprio's crew close to the Saba island, and they carried him aboard before turning him over to the Coast Guard.

#6 Blake Shelton aided a group of people who became trapped in a mud hole in Oklahoma.

Source: Handout/Getty Images

According to Entertainment Tonight, Bryar Blanton and three pals were riding alongside the Washita River in Oklahoma in 2015 when two of them became mired in a mud puddle. Blake Shelton "The Voice" judge Blake Shelton and a country artist, were driving along in his truck when the other two went in search of assistance.
When he was unable to remove them using his truck, he returned from home with his tractor, which was able to complete the task. Shelton responded to Blanton's tweet by expressing gratitude "No problem... Now you boys stay outta jail!!! Ha!!!"

#7 Jamie Foxx pulled a man out of a burning car.

Source: Getty Images

In 2016, while Jamie Foxx was traveling through Moorpark, California, Brett Kyle went off the road and into a ditch, causing multiple rolls of his vehicle. The car then caught fire while Kyle was still inside, according to ABC News.
He was freed from his seatbelt and taken out of the vehicle by Foxx and an off-duty EMT. When firefighters finally arrived, they found the automobile entirely engulfed in flames. Despite suffering burns and injuries to his head, neck, chest, and waist, Kyle was able to survive the collision.He told ABC News, "I'm not a hero, but had to do something."

#8 Kate Winslet helped save Richard Branson's mother from a fire.

Source: John Phillips/Getty Images

Have you heard the story of how Richard Branson's mother was saved from a fire by Oscar-winning performer Kate Winslet? When a fire broke out in 2011 at Branson's private home in the British Virgin Islands, Winslet rescued his mother, Eve. Branson told The Telegraph, "My mum is 90 and can walk, but it was more just to speed the process up than anything else," he added: "But anyway, she was great. She swept her up into her arms and got them out of the house as fast as possible."
Concerning this event, Eve told The Observer in 2014: "Anyway, I’d just about got outside and the rain was pouring down and I didn’t have my contact lenses in, but I was making my way out and Kate and her two children were behind me. Then she just sort of picked me up and took me down four steps and that was it. I’m sorry, I can’t make a story out of it." She added, "I suppose I might have been a bit slow for her."

#9 Clint Eastwood saved the tournament director Steve John from choking with the Heimlich maneuver performing.

Source: Getty Images / Riccardo S. Savi

The night before the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in 2014, Eastwood gave the tournament director Steve John the Heimlich technique while they were both at a party. Yes, the real Dirty Harry intervened to prevent him from choking.
John reported to the Associated Press: "I was drinking water and eating these little appetizers, threw down a piece of cheese and it just didn’t work. I was looking at him and couldn’t breathe. He recognized it immediately and saved my life." he continued, "I can’t believe I’m 202 pounds and he threw me up in the air three times."

#10 Dolly Parton dragged her 9-year-old co-star out of the path of an oncoming automobile on set.

Source: David Crotty/Contributor/Getty Images

On the set of Netflix's "Christmas on the Square," actress Talia Hill said that Dolly Parton saved her from harm in a December 2020 interview with Inside Edition. "She hugged me and shook me and said, 'I saved your life!' And my mom was crying, and she said, 'Yes, you did, Dolly Parton. Yes, you did,'" said Hill.
Parton has a history of heroism: The Dolly Parton COVID-19 Research Fund also gave $1 million to Vanderbilt University's coronavirus research in 2020, which helped develop the Moderna vaccine, which is reported to be 94.5% effective – potentially saving many more lives.

#11 Jennifer Lawrence assisted a woman who had collapsed on her front lawn.

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Lawrence is just Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games. The actress discovered and spotted a woman dead outside her apartment building in 2012. J. Law, along with several other persons, sat with the woman and checked on her while waiting for emergency responders to come.
Sergeant Richard Lewis of the Santa Monica Police Department told Us Weekly at the time of the incident, "Miss Lawrence and several others waited beside the female until the police and paramedics arrived. It was not serious and the female will be OK."

#12 Melissa Errico assisted in saving a guy who had slipped onto the subway rails in New York City.

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Errico, a Broadway actress and "Billions" star, was returning from a meeting with her vocal coach when she overheard pleas for assistance coming from the underground. In 2019, she told People magazine, "I literally hopped into action." She added "I came running over. I was like, 'You can't lift him? We got this.'"
The actress, along with two other kind bystanders, were able to free the man from the rails despite his fractured foot and numerous injuries on his arms. "I'm a mom," Errico declared. "Who better to save a life than a mom? I had the energy and jumped in to help this guy. I completed the chain. People do bigger things than that every day."

#13 Sean Penn assisted in rescue efforts during Hurricane Katrina and the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

Source: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images

Sean Penn is known for appearing in disaster zones. In 2005, following Hurricane Katrina, he helped stranded persons in New Orleans by paddling his boat by hand because the motor had failed. He also went to Haiti to assist with relief operations following the 2010 earthquake. And while Russian armies invaded Ukraine, he was recently seen attending a press conference at the presidential office there.
According to the New York Post, Penn visited Ukraine last week to observe the Russian incursion firsthand while working on a documentary about the unrest there.

#14 T.I. coaxed a suicidal man off a ledge.

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In 2010, a guy made threats to jump from a 22-story office building. Police were attempting to reason with him. Then, CNN reports, rapper T.I. intervened. The man accepted his invitation to meet with him and speak with him. He was transferred to a nearby hospital for a psychological assessment following a brief talk.
James Polite, a spokesman for the Atlanta Police, told the publication that T.I. "just happened to be in the right place at the right time."

#15 Gerard Butler saved a boy from drowning.

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According to The Herald, Gerard Butler heard a youngster screaming for help in 1997 when he was enjoying a picnic at Taymouth Castle in Scotland. He hurried to the edge of the river and saw a 14-year-old child struggling in it. He brought him to safety after jumping in.
''I wouldn't call myself a hero. I just acted instinctively," Butler shared with The Herald. "When I brought him out he was lifeless. I'm just glad he's all right now."

#16 During a performance of his play "Tree," Idris Elba allegedly comforted an audience member who was experiencing a seizure.

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The play "Tree," written by Idris Elba and Kwame Kwei-Armah, was being performed at Upper Campfield Market Hall in Manchester when a 33-year-old lady suffered a seizure, according to a 2019 story in The Mirror. The woman claimed that when she awoke, Elba was watching over her. Then he went with her to the ambulance.
"I would love to thank him personally, but doubt I will cross paths with him, he's very famous," the woman shared with The Mirror.

#17 John Krasinski saved a woman from drowning in Costa Rica.

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After graduating from high school, John Krasinski spent a few months instructing English in Costa Rica. Krasinski told Playboy that he rescued the life of a woman who was being carried away by a riptide during a trip to Manuel Antonio beach.
"At that moment, I didn't ask anyone," he shared with the magazine. "There was no one to help me. I just went out and tried to save her. And then of course when I got out there, I was in a crosscurrent with her. It was one of those moments of 'Oh my God, you just made a poor choice and it might cost you your life.' ... But I got her back. When I got within 20 yards or so of the shore, some surfers came out. Granted, not everybody needs to have life-or-death experiences, but that changed my entire life. All of a sudden I grew up."

#18 Steve Buscemi volunteered with firemen following September 11

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According to Salon, actor Steve Buscemi served as a firefighter in New York City from 1980 to 1984. Buscemi resumed her work after September 11, according to the Facebook group Brotherhood of Fire.
After the attack, he went back to his job at the Little Italy fire station, where he spent several days helping to sift among the debris for survivors."It was a privilege to be able to do it," he shared, according to a post on the Facebook page. "It was great to connect with the firehouse I used to work with and with some of the guys I worked alongside."

#19 A fan said that Tom Holland saved her from being crushed by a mob clamoring for his autograph.

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In June 2019, a Twitter u@NamelessCass claimed that Tom Holland intervened while she was being pushed against a barricade in New York City by fans clamoring for his autograph. She said that her neck was being squeezed against the metal bar.
"I'm literally going to throw your s*** on the floor if you keep pushing that girl," he told the crowd. "You're literally crushing her." When she said she was going to have a panic attack, Holland said, "I've got you. I've got you," and asked the people pushing her to back up.

#20 Ryan Gosling stopped a woman from walking into oncoming traffic.

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Ryan Gosling rescued a woman from a cab in New York City in 2012, as if his adoring fans didn't already like him enough. You'll be disappointed to learn that Gosling didn't say, "Hey, Girl!" as the woman claimed in a tweet that seemed like it was taken straight out of a romantic comedy. He did, however, add, "Hey, watch out!".