Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson halted production on the 'Baywatch' movie so he could meet a fan with special needs.
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson meeting Ryan and his family (c) Instagram
The 43-year-old WWE wrestler-and-actor was informed that Ryan, his nurse and his mother and brother had come to the beach based set to try and meet his idol and were prepared to wait all day until he had finished working.
However, big-hearted Dwayne told director Seth Gordon and the crew he had to take some time out to go and meet his fan, and he admits he was blown away by Ryan's strength and big heart and was touched when he told the former grappling champion that he loved him in sign language.
In an emotional Instagram post made on Monday (25.04.16) - which was accompanied by a photo of the meet-and-greet - Dwayne wrote: "Thank you universe.
"I was on set this morning ready to start our shooting day when I got word that there was a family with a special needs young man named RYAN who was hoping to meet me. They understood that they travelled in unannounced but they were willing to wait all day until I wrapped to meet. That would've 12hrs. Way too long.
"So I asked production to hold and walked across the beach to the barriers where they were waiting. When I walked down the stairs, Ryan's mom (pictured here) was waiting with a huge hug! Her tears started to come as she whispered, "Thank you, thank you". I met Ryan, his brother and his nurse. What a great and cool kid. Without getting into the details, this kid has waaaaaay more heart, is stronger and tougher than I could ever imagine.
He can't talk much, but he did tell me, "I love you" in sign language. I thanked him so much for that love. (sic)"
Dwayne felt "grateful" to meet his loyal fan and his family and insisted these experiences make him realised how lucky he is to be a movie star and wrestling legend and are his favourite thing about his work.
He added: "I walked away from this family so grateful to have met them and Ryan. I don't ever take meetings like this for granted and when that mama hugged me today and I felt her start to cry ... that stuff gets me every single time I hug a parent in these situations, because I'm a parent too and will do anything to make my babies happy and put a smile on their faces.
"I know I'm a lucky guy to be in this position and have this platform. I'm grateful and moments like this will always, ALWAYS be the best part of my job.
"Stay strong Ryan and thanks for teaching me how to sign language buddy. Great meeting you and your family. Thank you universe. (sic)"
Dwayne - who has four-month-old daughter Jasmine with girlfriend Lauren Hashian, and 14-year-old daughter Simone from his marriage to Dany Garcia - regularly makes time to speak with his fans and recently met "warrior" baby Sally Walker Collins who had undergone open heart surgery.