Hollywood star Ben Stiller meets 'hero' President Zelenskyy in war-torn Ukraine
Visiting Ukraine and meeting his 'hero' Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ben Stiller hopes his visit will continue efforts of solidarity with Ukraine, ITV News' Martha Fairlie reports.
Hollywood actor Ben Stiller has met his "hero," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as the country continues to suffer Russia's invasion.
The US star, 56, has been meeting with refugees in Poland and Ukraine forced to flee the war.
"It's a great honour for me. You are my hero. You quit a great acting career for this," he told the actor-turned-President.
"Not so great as you," Mr Zelenskyy replied.
"What you have done, the way you rallied the country and for the world, it's really inspiring," Stiller went on.
Stiller arrived in Ukraine on Sunday as a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) goodwill ambassador.
He visited the town of Irpin on Monday and talked to people directly affected by the war.
"You see it on TV, you see it on social media, it is something else to actually see it and feel it and then talk to people," he told Mr Zelenskyy.
It is not the first time a Hollywood A-lister has paid a visit to Ukraine. Angelina Jolie made a humanitarian visit to the city of Lviv in May to meet children who had been injured and affected by the war.
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On Monday, which was World Refugee Day, Stiller called for the equal treatment of refugees in a video message from Kyiv.
In the video, he called for support and funding not only for those forced to flee their homes in Ukraine because of the war but for the other 100 million refugees around the world.
"I'm here meeting people who've been impacted by the work and hearing how it's changed their lives," he said.
"War and violence are devastating people all over the world. No one chooses to flee their home. Seeking safety is a right and it needs to be upheld for every person."