Back in 2016 I met an actor named Robbie Kay.
I was a huge fan of the show “Once Upon A Time” when I was younger. My dad showed me the fourth season first, since it had Elsa and Anna. I had watched “Frozen” when it came into theaters and absolutely loved it, so I was already intrigued. After my sister and I watched that season, we started from the beginning. That way we could understand the OUAT “lore.”
Then, we made it to season three. Where Peter Pan showed up.
Spoilers- Pan turns out to be the bag guy of the first half of season three, and of course the good guys end his terror. However, I fell head over heals for the actor. As you could probably guess, that’s Robbie Kay. I started wanting to watch any film he was in. I didn’t get to his whole list, but I was able to watch some of the show “Heroes: Reborn” before it stopped peaking my interest. Then I heard of the story “Ways to Live Forever”. It originally started as a book, but then got adapted into a movie. Kay played then main boy of the story. One of the reasons this story stuck out to me the most was that this wasn’t a happy ending story. This was a story about a young boy with leukemia. He had a bucket list that he wanted to complete before he passed. Throughout the story, he, some family members, and some friends complete the list as much as they can before the story ends.
This story really touched my heart. It made me aware at a young age on how illnesses can really affect someone’s daily life. I knew someone could get sick, hell of course I had gotten sick at that point in my life. But some can be life-threatening, blood related illnesses being one of them.
I wanted to watch the film since Kay was in it, however I took the time to read the novel before watching the movie. That was a rule/habit that my sister and I had for a good chunk of time. Reading the book before the movie! These days, it’s not really the case, but I just got ta get back into reading again!
In early 2016, Kay released a shirt that was going to help support kids with leukemia. I wanted to help support, so I purchased one of said shirts. Still have it to this day!
I ended up meeting Kay March 2016 at a convention called Heroes and Villains Fan Fest in Chicago, IL. It had a lot of actors from lots of media, but one of the only actors I recognized at the time was Robbie Kay. It was one of the first big conventions I went to. And I remember it being such a good time!
Meeting Kay himself was a whole experience in and of itself. I was able to get an autograph from him and talked to him about acting and tips on how to continue on with it. It was also just such an emotional experience for me. At that point, I don’t think I had ever met someone I looked up to- celeb wise. So it was very overwhelming and so rewarding. I remember standing outside of his booth and just bursting into tears after that interaction. I was just so happy. My mom hugged me close as my tears flowed, hoping that Kay wouldn’t pay me any mind. A bucket list item of mine had just been checked off!
But I did just meet an icon that meant a lot to me! But that wasn’t the only time I got to see him.
Kay had a photo booth, where fans could take pictures with him. I had gotten gifted a ticket to take a photo with him, and I was so grateful. A second time to see him! I was so spoiled that day.
When it was my turn, I remember being very nervous, but so excited. I was gonna be able to hug him! It’s also moments like those where you remember how short you are.
I entered the booth and was greeted with a big smile from Kay. I didn’t think up any cool poses to do with him, so we just put our arms around each other for the photo. He was so sweet and kind, and hearing that British accent in person was just something else! It was a quick pic, and then one more hug, and then we said our goodbyes. He had many more people to see!
That convention and experience was life changing. It made me realize how much I adored the film industry. How much respect I have for the actors and crew that it takes to put all of it together. Not only the shows and movies, but those kinds of events too. Seeing fans is probably such a nice experience, but I can bet it doesn’t always go smoothly with everybody. With the actors and the crew, they’re just regular people with regular lives, like me and you. People just gotta remember that!
I still follow him on socials, but I’m not as big of a superfan of Kay as I used to be. He does a lot of photography these days, so every once and a while, I’ll peak over at that Instagram page and see what photos he’s gotten. Now that I’m focusing on more photography too, I could possibly look at Kay for inspiration!
Meeting him was a very big step in my life. It’s safe to say that experience helped me go on the path that I truly want to be on. It’s only been seven years, but seven years is a hell of a long time to make progress. I hope Mr. Robbie Kay himself has been on a path of his life that he is happy with too. We all deserve that.
Coley Rose's Corner 